Twitter Wants to Be Your TV

Profitability doesn’t appear to be in Twitter’s future anytime soon. Losses are increasing, membership growth has slowed, and the company’s stock price is down 28 percent since the start of the year, amid a broader selloff in the Nasdaq. But there’s some good news: Twitter’s ad revenue is projected to reach $1.1 billion in 2014, an increase of 84 percent from the year before, according to researcher EMarketer. That’s due in no small part to Twitter Amplify, a year-old program that has allowed the company to snag a piece of the billions of dollars spent annually on TV ads.

Twitter aims to take advantage of the sales strength of media companies that have more established relationships with sponsors. Its salespeople approach advertisers alongside representatives from media companies such as the NFL, the NBA, and Viacom. Together they present a unique proposition: Twitter will run video highlights from major live broadcasts, with advertisers’ names and messages playing before the clip.