Before there was X, Meta, Qwikster and New Coke all showed how rebrands can go
Last week, the company formerly known as Twitter underwent changes to its desktop and app interface, as well as its headquarters to become X, a rebrand initiated by its owner, Elon Musk.
Musk bought the company in October for $44 billion and has since made a series of changes, including placing temporary limits on the number of posts users can view, changing the "tweets" to "posts" and charging for verification.
But not everyone is a fan of the new logo, with many on the app complaining of the new design.
While it's too early to tell what X will look like as it transitions to Musk's vision of an "everything app", the changes have brought to mind a few other brands that underwent famous transformations, with varying degrees of success.
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Netflix and Qwikster
In 2011, Netflix announced a plan to divide its DVD mail program and its streaming services into two separate offerings, the latter being called Qwikster. That meant users would have to pay both for Netflix (at the time, just the DVDs) and Qwikster if they wanted both services.
Fans objected to the split in services and the resulting price hike (from $10 to $16 per month for both services). Netflix lost an estimated 1 million subscribers in the month of the switch, as users turned to emerging competitors such as Hulu and Amazon, NPR reported at the time.
A few months after the initial announcement, Netflix abandoned Qwikster.
Dunkin' Donuts to Dunkin'
In 2019, the famous doughnut fast food retailer dropped "donuts" from its name to become just Dunkin'. This rebrand came alongside other changes including an expanded drink menu, increased social media marketing to younger demographics and faster drive-thru lines.
"Dropping 'Donuts' from the name — obviously was like a shot in the air and letting everyone know that Dunkin' is different," Drayton Martin, Dunkin's vice president of brand stewardship, previously told Business Insider. "And we just keep proving that over and over and over again."
Facebook to Meta
In 2021, Mark Zuckerberg announced plans to rename the company previously known as Facebook to Meta, as part of his plan to build a metaverse.
A metaverse is combination of multiple elements of technology, including virtual reality, augmented reality and video where users "live" within a digital universe. Supporters of the metaverse envision users working, playing and staying connected with friends through everything from concerts and conferences to virtual trips around to the world.
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New Coke
In 1985, Coca-Cola released a revamped version of Coke with a changed recipe and the word "new" on the signature red cans. The new formula was sweeter and smoother and expected to be a hit.
Instead, fans of Coca-Cola demanded the company return to the original recipe. One poll found only 13% of soda drinkers liked the new Coke, and Pepsi even went as far as to make fun of it in its own commercials.
Only 77 days later, the company resorted to its original recipe, with "New Coke" serving as the new standard of a failed product rebrand.
Contributing: Mike Snider, Brett Molina
