Change is coming at Twitter. Some level of change, of course, is inevitable - they'll need to appoint a new CEO some time. But more than that, things are brewing. The rumblings of the internet are enough to suggest that a major shift is on the way.
On Bloomberg, there's a report today on Twitter's search for a CEO, and how their need for a new leader is becoming more pressing as stock in the micro-blog giant continues to slide (now down 22% since the beginning of their search for a replacement for Dick Costolo) and key executives leave the organization.
"The board needs to take some action and communicate it to shareholders," says Jo-Ellen Pozner, an expert in corporate governance and organizational misconduct from the University of California. "There's a huge amount of uncertainty, which creates a really uncomfortable feeling for shareholders and internal stakeholders."
And they do. A new CEO needs to be appointed, but at the same time, they don't want to rush it. Twitter's board will be meeting this week to discuss, among other issues, how their CEO search is going, with Business Insider reporting that former Cisco executive Padmasree Warrior and CBS Interative boss Jim Lanzone are among the potential candidates for the job - although many still believe that interim CEO Jack Dorsey is the most likely successor to the role.
But as an interesting side note, a separate report on Business Insider today hints at why Twitter is considered such a viable prospect for takeover. In App Annie's latest listing of the top app downloads for iOS, Twitter currently sits at number nine, amidst a raft of other tools from Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and Google.
That's a big draw for potential buyers - as noted in the report:
"Google purchasing the company would not only benefit its search and social ambitions, but also increase its foothold on iOS. Facebook, which owns four of the top apps including its eponymous social network, is all about its advertising business and Twitter would be another popular-enough option that would appeal to advertisers."
The report also suggests that both Google and Facebook have both already approached Twitter about a possible buyout - either would cause a seismic shift in the social business landscape.
As the saying goes, 'where there's smoke, there's fire', and there's a lot of smoke surrounding Twitter right now. There's been a noticeable slowdown in social media news this week, which sometimes happens preceding a big event. It may, of course, also be attributed to the lead-in to a long weekend, but regardless, there's many pointers hinting towards something big on the horizon, sometime soon.
Watch this space.