X drops Unilever from advertising boycott lawsuit

X, formerly Twitter, has dropped global consumer goods firm Unilever from its advertising boycott lawsuit after the two reached an agreement for a new ad partnership. 

Elon Musk, owner of X, filed a federal lawsuit in August, which alleged that Unilever, alongside the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and member companies, engaged in anti competitive behaviour and organised an advertising boycott that violated US antitrust laws. 

Following the announcement of the lawsuit, the WFA said it was discontinuing operations of its Global Alliance for Responsible Media non-profit initiative due to misinterpretations of its purpose and financial strain caused by the allegations. 

X made the announcement on the social media platform, stating that it has reached an agreement with Unilever and was pleased “to continue our partnership with them on the platform”, adding that this is “the first part of the ecosystem-wide solution”. 

Unilever – whose brands include Dove, Hellmann’s and Magnum – said in a statement it had “reached an agreement with X, which has committed to meeting our responsibility standards to ensure the safety and performance of our brands on the platform”.

Both X and Unilever declined to comment further on the terms of the new agreement.

Other big brands that X has identified in the lawsuit include Mars Inc., CVS Health, and Orsted. In the court filing on Friday, which mentioned the new agreement with Unilever, X said that it will continue to pursue its claims against the other defendants. 

The new agreement between X and Unilever has raised concern in the industry, with some claiming the giving into such pressures could end up setting a troubling precedent. 

Claire Atkin, CEO of industry watchdog Check My Ads, said on LinkedIn: “I can’t imagine what the other defendants of this lawsuit are feeling right now. They did nothing wrong by avoiding X, and now Unilever is breaking from the group as if they have. 

“Elon Musk, Jim Jordan, and a slew of other extremists are wielding the courts to intimidate so many of us. They don’t even have to have a reasonable case for their tactics to shut down non-profit and academic organisations like GARM and the Stanford Observatory. So, it’s worrying to see otherwise powerful companies kneel to these tactics. 

“Check My Ads will always support brands’ rights to advertise where they want to advertise, and to avoid places they don’t want. This is a weird new world of bullying and intimidation, and we are watching closely.”