The content generation and social networking site Twitter is to move into a new advertising business remit, allowing companies to pay for ”promoted tweets.”

Multinational organisations such as Bravo, Sony Pictures, Red Bull, Starbucks and Virgin America are rumoured to be some of the first advertisers who will pay to have their content displayed first on Twitter search results.

Such paid tweets would be seen by Twitter users when searching for most popular topics being tweeted about. If the promoted tweets are not forwarded or replied to by users, then they will disappear according to co-founder Biz Stone. This will encourage ads to be engaging and informing, persuading users to take a certain action.

The Guardian reports that promoted content will be labelled to differentiate between paid tweets and standard content. In addition, Stone commented on a Twitter blog that paid tweets will have to achieve a high standard saying: ”Promoted tweets must meet a higher bar – they must resonate with users.”

Twitter has been growing rapidly since it was founded four years ago and now has around 45 million regular users. It has previously shown hesitation to enter into the world of advertising, but with an increase in users, the site is to take a more proactive approach to marketing.

Despite criticism from industry commentators who believe that the promoted tweets could put off some users, Twitter believes that the quick action of the site in removing irrelevant ads will ensure that users still hold control.