Twitter snatches X handle without paying a single dime, OG owner gets new account

In a gusty rebranding campaign, Elon Musk, CEO of X, made headlines with the rebranding of Twitter to X on Tuesday, with a new sleek black-and-white logo featuring the letter X. However, later it came to light that X had taken over the @x Twitter handle from its original owner, Gene X Hwang, without providing adequate compensation and communication.

This move might not have raised legal concerns straightaway, but definitely has raised a few eyebrows, adding complexity to the ambitious vision of turning X into a multi-functional "super app."

The handle takeover

• As the news of Twitter's transformation into X broke, many were surprised to find that the @x handle, which belonged to Gene X Hwang since 2007, had been taken over without any prior communication or financial settlement.
• Hwang, the co-founder of Orange Photography, confirmed that he received an email informing him of the takeover, but he was neither approached nor offered any negotiation for the transfer of his username.
• What might look surprising to many, Hwang, kind of knew this was inevitable, who casually used the microblogging site.

The original owner of @x handle revealed Twitter took it without paying, but offered him merch pic.twitter.com/E69ICrHETc

— Dexerto (@Dexerto) July 26, 2023

• Talking to Mashable, he said, there was no back-and-forth on the matter, and the username termination mail from the genericsupport@twitter.com (email address) was a one-off communication from X.

Who owns usernames, then?

• Well, users generally lack legal rights over their social media usernames.
• Usernames are generally limited to use on the platform as long as the platform allows it, and they have no legal claim to the usernames if the platform decides to change or reassign them a  new one, according to the terms of service of most of the social media sites.

• Except for trademarks, users, unfortunately, do not have any rights to claim ownership over specific handles.

In lieu of?

• Although Hwang was not offered any financial compensation for relinquishing his @x handle, the company did provide some non-financial compensation. What, you ask?
• X offered Hwang an alternative handle that retained everything from his original account, along with X-branded merchandise and a chance to visit X's headquarters to meet its executives.
• However, this gesture did not go down well with users who believed Hwang deserved more for surrendering the treasure he held for 16 long years.

And...

• Moreover, Hwang, whose bio says, 'very interesting times' was assigned a new username @x12345678998765.

Alls well that ends well

— x (@x12345678998765) July 26, 2023

• According to him, he was given a chance to choose a new username of his choice, which he did not, resulting in the assignment of the 'number-heavy new username.

The rebranding of Twitter as X by Elon Musk has been met with enthusiasm and controversy. The takeover of the @x handle from its original owner, Gene X Hwang, without substantial compensation, raises ethical and moral questions, to say the least. As X moves forward to realise its vision of becoming a multi-functional "super app," it will need to navigate a few more serious potential legal challenges and ensure its brand stands out.