Recent rumors hint towards an Ecommerce future for Twitter.
According to a report on Re/code, social micro-blogging network Twitter is in the final stages of closing a deal with web and mobile payment platform Stripe. Neither of the companies has confirmed any of the rumors, but sources close to both firms have assured the deal is legitimate.
It is not understood yet as to how Twitter will plan to use Stripe’s payment platform. Twitter has tried to implement Ecommerce features in the past, and last year partnered with American Express to offer tweetable purchases for Xbox game consoles, Amazon Kindles, and AmEx gift cards directly from its mobile application. The promotion was short lived and was eventually canceled. Twitter also recently partnered with coffee giant Starbucks to offer the “tweet-a-coffee” feature. Although, linking with a prominent payment Startup shows intention of offering a fully integrated payment feature, mainly for companies who use the micro-blogging service as a marketing platform.
Twitter’s revenue is generated from promoted tweets, promoted accounts, and promoted trends. If Twitter were to offer a payment option it could expand its promotional offerings to include promoted product listings and can serve as a marketplace for online stores.
Chinese social network Weibo has already taken similar steps and partnered with local Ecommerce firm Alibaba to integrate the Alipay wallet for in-app Payments for its marketplaces Taobao and Tmall.
Stripe was established in 2010, and has since raised $40 million in investments. The company supports all major US credit and debit cards and has also begun to offer support in Europe this past August. Stripe provides payment options to companies like ridesharing service Lyft, Ecommerce platform Shopify, and online grocery startup Instacart.
