Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey (pictured) revealed the company was exploring options to increase revenue including a paid subscription model, as a hit on advertising income continued in Q2 due to the Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

During an earnings call with analysts, Dorsey said the company was “in the very, very early phases of exploring” novel revenue streams, adding tests were likely to happen this year.

Dorsey added the company had “a really high bar for when we would ask consumers to pay for aspects of Twitter”, explaining any new revenue line would be complimentary to its advertising business.

Advertising revenue fell 23 per cent year-on-year in Q2 to $562 million, continuing a trend from the opening three months.

It reported a loss of $1.2 billion compared with a $1.1 billion profit in Q2 2019, citing an inability to use its international deferred tax assets. Overall revenue dropped 19 per cent to $683 million.

Looking for the positives, the company pointed to 34 per cent growth in its daily active user base to 186 million, attributed to “global conversation around current events and ongoing product improvements”.

During the call, Dorsey apologised for a hacking incident which exposed personal user data last week, adding the company will “continue to secure our systems and work with external firms and law enforcement”.