Here’s another sign that you’re not really in control of your brand on social media. Imagine you score a great username or handle for your social media account. You tend to it regularly, planting seeds and watching it grow. One day, you have half a million users that subscribe.
And then…
< poof >
It’s gone.
Not because you did anything wrong, but because someone else, more powerful, decides they want your username.
Twitter recently took control of the “@music” username from Jeremy Vaught, who had used it since 2007 to build a community of 500k followers. Although Twitter, now rebranded as X, gave Vaught no choice but to give up the handle, he was offered alternative music-related usernames.
He’s using his new X-assigned handle “@musicfan,” but as you can imagine he’s not particularly happy about it according to several sources.
This incident raises questions about the worth and security of handles on the X platform. X’s terms of service say it can “reclaim usernames without liability.” The threat of losing a handle may discourage creators from building communities long-term.
While Vaught did not monetize “@music,” he occasionally reviewed audio gear from companies seeking the opinion of an influencer with his high follower count. Years ago, Vaught worried Twitter might take his handle, but Twitter instead created its own “@twittermusic.” However, under new leadership since Elon Musk’s acquisition, X has now seized the coveted “@music” name from its longtime user.
< poof >
H/T CNBC