Entertainment giant Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) could have a flutter on Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), according to reports.
The cartoon, movie and theme park group is rumored to be considering a bid for Twitter, which is thought to be in play amid criticism that it lacks innovation.
Disney is the most likely acquirer of the troubled social media outlet ahead of Microsoft, Salesforce.com and Google, Marketwatch cited broker Monness, Crespi, Hardt & Co Inc as saying.
Twitter’s chief executive Jack Dorsey is a Disney director and Twitter could provide a distribution channel for the media conglomerate.
The broker said Microsoft is already preoccupied with buying LinkedIn, Salesforce would struggle to find any benefit in buying Twitter and Google could face anti-trust concerns.
However, some analysts say a Disney takeover could make using the outlet less attractive to Disney's media rivals, since Disney would have control over their output on the site.
Reuters cited unidentified people familiar with the matter as saying Twitter was working with investment banks on its options, although there has been no official comment.
Twitter’s stock was slightly up in early Wall Street trading and Disney’s share price was flat at US$91.97.