For a short time yesterday, some users saw a setting called Tweet Media which said, "By default, you'll only see images and videos shared by people you're following, and reveal those by people you're not. Check this box to see media from everyone on Twitter."
The feature suggests that Twitter will be adding multimedia into the Twitter.com streams. This would change the Twitter experience pretty dramatically. This feature would make your Twitter.com stream look really similar to your Facebook stream.
Shortly after the update was discovered by users Twitter disabled it and issued a statement to Mashable confirming they are working on new features for Twitter.com. "We’re constantly exploring features and settings. What you saw was a small test of a potential consumption setting for inline media. We show inline media on our own iPhone and Android apps."
Twitter is working hard to become profitable but it will not be easy for them. According to a recent study conducted by USC's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (PDF), 0% of the survey participants said they would consider paying for Twitter. 55% of respondents said they would be willing to put up with advertising, though, which is the way Twitter seems to be moving. They recently added the Earlybird service, which is a Twitter account called @earlybird that they will be updating periodically with exclusive offers and select advertising. The benefit to this type of advertising is that it is only displayed to those who choose to follow @earlybird. Those that don't will not see the ads.
Image source: Mashable
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