June 22 (Bloomberg) -- Twitter Inc. plans to generate its first revenue this year from companies such as Dell Inc., Whole Foods Market Inc. and Starbucks Corp., which use the micro- messaging site to communicate with millions of customers.

“The idea is if they are getting value out of Twitter then we could add more value to what they are doing and we could get some revenue,” Twitter co-founder Biz Stone said in an interview today. “We think we’ll get to something this year, however simple, that shows we’re making some money.” He declined to give sales estimates for this year.

The San Francisco-based service could make money by verifying Twitter accounts, said Stone, so users “following” brands would know it was really Whole Foods or Coca-Cola Co. sending Tweets, or instant messages that can be 140 characters long. Twitter could also offer statistics to businesses detailing how effective their Tweets are and offer multiple accounts to large businesses with many branches, he said.

Twitter had an estimated 18 million users in May and has grown into the third-largest social-networking site, according to research firm ComScore Inc. Facebook Inc. is the largest, with 307.1 million users in April, followed by MySpace with 126.9 million. Stone, 35, shot down talks of a buyout by Microsoft Corp. or Google Inc.

“We’re not having those acquisition discussions, we’re not engaging in them,” he said in during the 56th annual Cannes Lions Advertising Festival, which takes place this week.

Venture Funding

Twitter, which can be accessed on via computer or mobile phone, counts among its users celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan, large companies including Dell and Starbucks and startups seeking to attract an audience cheaply.

Dell said it earned $3 million in revenue through Twitter since 2007, according to a New York Times report on June 15.

Twitter has held four rounds of venture funding since its start in 2007 and isn’t currently seeking more funds, Stone said. Media reports have put the total funding figure at $57 million, which Stone didn’t dispute.

When asked how long the hype around Twitter could last, Stone said he’s realistic about Internet trends.

“This kind of stuff doesn’t last forever and you have to have a healthy attitude toward it. Far be it from me to say when it would end, that would be a total guess.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Kristen Schweizerkschweizer1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 22, 2009 13:29 EDT