Elon Screams "Sue 'Em All!" at Ad Cartel For Costing X App Billions... (Looking At You, Disney)

Alright folks, I’ll go ahead and save you the trouble of pulling up X to see for yourself: Yes, Elon Musk is suing… again. The dude is taking momentum to a whole new level as he’s now shifted his focus away from Sam weird Al-tman and now towards the ad cartel for “illegally” boycotting X. (Looking at you, Disney). 

(Source: Bloomberg Law)

According to Bloomberg Law, Musk is making the Global Alliance for Responsible Media regret their company name for legit being responsible for costing X billions of dollars in revenue. This federal court filing in Texas also includes Musk going toe-to-to toe with other members including, Disney, CVS, Unilever, and Ørsted for conspiring to withhold advertising dollars under the guise of “brand safety standard”. Translation: They didn’t like that Elon Musk doesn’t identify with “Wokeness”.

(Source: Giphy) 

Linda Yaccarino, X’s CEO, fired off an open letter to advertisers, accusing these organizations of undermining the marketplace of ideas as she stated: “People are hurt when the marketplace of ideas is undermined and some viewpoints are not funded over others as part of an illegal boycott,”. 

(Source: Real Clear Politics)

Now on the surface, this may seem petty, but when you really look at the fine print, this boycott poses as a major blow to Elon’s social media bottom line. For instance, GARM’s (because I hate typing Global Alliance for Responsible media over and over) member companies control 90% of global marketing spending—nearly $1 trillion per year. 

Meaning if X's accusations hold water, this could be one of the biggest antitrust cases since, well, ever. (Ha! Even Google’s major loss yesterday might take second place… talk about a double loss). 

(Source: Giphy) 

What’s more, is that Elon, being the man that always chooses the path least traveled, isn’t alone in this. The House Judiciary Committee has already expanded its probe into GARM’s activities, suggesting that this isn’t just Elon’s paranoia at work. Since this debacle has started around the time Elon shouted “F**ck’em”  on stage, the Committee has sent letters to over 40 companies, demanding documents and answers about their relationship with GARM.

(Source: Insider Radio)

In addition to adding fuel to the fire, this follows Musk’s animosity towards Disney’s Bob Iger after Musk accused advertisers of trying to “blackmail’ him during the New York Times DealBook Summit last year. So now with this newfound lawsuit, not only is Elon proving to the world that he ain’t no pushover, but it’s also putting the nail in the coffin of his less than positive relationship with Iger and other ad cartel executives. 

(Source: Feepik) 

With that said, what does this situation look like going forward? Well for X, if Musk wins, it could mean a hefty payout and possibly the reinstatement of some of those precious ad dollars. It might even force a change in how these advertising alliances operate in terms of boycotting free speech. 

If Musk loses, well then GARM and its members will happily pay their legal fees, and go about their day's shadow banning anyone who disagrees with them. You know, because in 2024, agreeing to disagree is archaic. 

(Source: Giphy) 

But alas, for investors, obviously this doesn’t mean jack squat regarding X, considering it’s not publicly traded. However, in the likes of Disney, CVS, and the other publicly traded GARM members, it’s not a good look. 

Disney investors have already been making arrangements to sleep under the nearest bridge as the stock has tumbled more than -29% from its March highs - while CVS is down another blistering -28.88% YTD. So clearly, this lawsuit from our boy Elon doesn’t inject much optimism for any of these companies.

(Source: X) 

Now of course, nothing is set and stone yet, this story is still developing. However, as the lawsuit continues to make its way throughout the courts, it’s crucial to keep an eye on these bluechips going forward. 

In the meantime, as we all experience another wild week of price action, it might be a good idea to start playing a drinking game for every time Elon “sues”. I’m sure we can all agree that would lift some spirits. 

(Source: MotorWorks Brewing)

Stocks.News holds positions in the Walt Disney Company, and Google as mentioned in the article.