EXPLAINER: What Twitter could do as privately held company

NEW YORK (AP) — If Elon Musk and Twitter get their way, the company will soon be privately held and under his control.

The most obvious immediate change would likely be Twitter's stock being taken off the New York Stock Exchange. But the company would also likely get freed from having to give regular updates about its business to U.S. regulators and to Wall Street.

One important change for Twitter users is that the company would likely have more freedom to make big or unpopular changes. That's because it wouldn't have to worry about potential blowback from Wall Street.

Here's a look at what it means for a company to go private.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO ITS STOCK?

If the merger closes as planned, Twitter investors would get $54.20 in cash for each share they own. Those shares would then be canceled and cease to exist.

WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES THAT MAKE?

Twitter would likely no longer have to file documents with U.S. regulators every three months to show how much money it‘s making. It also likely wouldn't have to announce changes to its strategy or operations that are big enough to materially change its fortunes. Now, it risks getting sued if it doesn't make such disclosures.

“The biggest distinction is that Musk as an owner would be beholden to his own desires or to his and whatever remaining shareholders are still around, rather than to the wide investor base that it has now,” said Eric Talley, a law professor at Columbia University.

WHO WOULD BE IN CHARGE?

The company would still have a board of directors, Talley said. It would also need to still follow state-level corporate governance rules, as well as all applicable tax, environmental and other laws.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF BEING PRIVATELY HELD?

Going private removes the possibility of Twitter having to answer to angry...