Twitter said to still be in buyout talks with Salesforce

Twitter may still be courting buyout interest from one potential suitor.

Rumors have been swirling for weeks that Google, Salesforce, Disney and Apple were interested in buying the financially troubled social network. While three of those companies have reportedly already bowed out, a potential deal with Salesforce is still on the table, the New York Times reported Monday.

Twitter executives are still in talks with the San Francisco-based cloud computing company about a possible acquisition, the newspaper reported, citing two anonymous sources described as being involved in the discussions. The talks are continuing despite the apparent reluctance of investors, who initially pushed the value of Salesforce's stock down by about 5 percent when news broke the company was considering a bid for Twitter.

Twitter has struggled to expand its user base, even as it adds features such as livestreams of political debates and sports games. The social media company hasn't been able to keep up with the growth of the massive fan bases of competitors such as Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat creator Snap.

The social network has reportedly told potential buyers it wants to wrap up negotiations on a sale by October 27. The company's shares fell more than 11 percent Monday after tumbling more than 20 percent on Thursday.

Twitter declined to comment, while Salesforce representatives did not respond to a request for comment.

Amid the buyout rumors, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has been working to rally his staff. In an internal memo sent last week to employees, Dorsey expressed an urgency to become the "first place people check to see what's happening."

"Let's show them what we're made of and deliver a better Twitter faster than they thought possible," he said in the memo. "We can do this every day. We can do this!"

First published October 10, 6:35 p.m. PT
Update, October 11 at 9 a.m PT: Information about Dorsey's memo added.