5 Issues That Could Derail Twitter

Twitter is on top of the world right now. Its user base and revenues are both growing. A slew of recent acquisitions and hires have maintained momentum — and of course, there's that upcoming IPO.

Recent history has shown that such perceptions can be quickly upendedFacebook famously stumbled out of the gate after filing for its IPO. Others, like Zynga and Groupon, have demonstrated that the days before a company goes public may be its best. Looking back even further, Friendster, MySpace and Yahoo have illustrated how even prescient and powerful businesses can be humbled by market forces.