Did Google try to buy Twitter?

The rumored offer to buy occurred while both Google and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) were pursuing Twitter for the right to access its data in real time for use in search engine indexing.

For Twitter, which has long been criticized for not having a way to generate revenue, the licensing of its data may solve a significant problem for the company and its investors. And, the possibilities are beginning to attract more attention. Tim Armstrong, CEO of AOL (which owns BloggingStocks), said, "I think those guys [i.e., Twitter] have done something very impactful. He continued, "And if it works with our platforms and we can leverage it, I think we would be happy to do that."

Could AOL be preparing to enter the fray? The timing makes sense, particularly since Armstrong revealed that the company is well-positioned to become independent from parent company Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), but nothing's been confirmed yet.

Twitter thus may have stumbled into the future, thanks to the insights of the larger, more established companies around it. Data is the currency of the internet, and there are plenty of people willing to open their wallets for it. Maybe the company won't have to slap those ads on its site after all.