X tries to solve its ad issue by suing advertisers as the platform’s problems pile up

Posting through it… Less than a year after Elon Musk told advertisers to “go f— yourself,” his relationship with major advertisers has somehow gotten even worse. This week, X filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against an ad industry coalition and four of its key members (CVS, Mars, Unilever, and Orsted). X, which has promoted itself as a home for free speech, alleged that the World Federation of Advertisers conspired to illegally boycott the platform. It was the latest update in a rocky relationship between advertisers and X since Musk’s acquisition.

• @ntitrust: X called the ad coalition’s moves a “coercive exercise of market power” and stated that the revenue hit the biz suffered has made it a “less effective competitor.”

• Threads: Last year, X sued Media Matters, a watchdog group, saying a report which said ads on X appeared near antisemitic content was an attempt to drive away advertisers. Another X suit, against the Center for Countering Digital Hate, was tossed in March.

• A suit X didn’t file: The platform’s facing a lawsuit from journalist Don Lemon, who had his X partnership scrapped after a contentious interview with Musk.

It’s what’s happening… and it’s not lookin’ good. Reports say X earned $114M in US revenue last quarter, down 53% year over year. Analysts estimate X’s global ad sales will hit ~$2B this year, less than half of its 2021 total. In June, Musk attended the Cannes Lions ad festival to woo back advertisers that had left the platform over inflammatory posts and moderation concerns. At the event, Musk told advertisers that X might be “worth trying out” again.