Twitter Considers Legal Action Against Meta’s Rival App Threads
Twitter is contemplating taking legal action against Meta, the parent company of Facebook, over its newly launched app Threads. Threads, which was introduced to millions of users on Wednesday, bears similarities to Twitter and has been positioned by Meta as a “friendly” alternative. However, Twitter’s CEO Elon Musk has accused Meta of cheating, prompting Twitter to send a legal letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The letter alleges that Meta hired former Twitter employees who had access to Twitter’s trade secrets and confidential information, which were used to develop the Threads app. Meta denies these claims. Over 30 million people have already signed up for Threads, according to Meta.
The look and feel of Threads closely resemble Twitter, with a familiar news feed and reposting features, noted BBC News technology reporter James Clayton. Twitter attorney Alex Spiro accused Meta of “systematic, wilful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property” in the letter. The letter demands that Meta immediately cease using any Twitter trade secrets or confidential information and warns of potential legal consequences. Both Meta and Twitter have been contacted for comment by BBC News.
Elon Musk responded to a tweet referencing the legal letter, stating that “competition is fine, cheating is not.” Meta spokesperson Andy Stone posted on Threads that none of the app’s engineering team consists of former Twitter employees. Both Musk and Zuckerberg have acknowledged the rivalry between Threads and Twitter. Threads is linked to Instagram but functions as a standalone app. Upon its launch in 100 countries, Zuckerberg broke his 11-year silence on Twitter to post a popular meme depicting two nearly identical Spider-Man figures in a stand-off. Musk commented that he prefers being attacked by strangers on Twitter rather than indulging in the false happiness of Instagram.
Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino tweeted that while the platform, which previously reported approximately 260 million monthly users, is often imitated, it can never be duplicated. Both Meta and Twitter have undergone significant layoffs this year, with Meta announcing a reduction of approximately 10,000 staff members in April. Twitter also experienced waves of redundancies following Musk’s takeover in October 2021.
How does Meta explain the similarities between Threads and Twitter, considering the denial of employing former Twitter employees
Twitter is considering taking legal action against Meta, the parent company of Facebook, over its new app Threads. The app, which was launched recently, has similarities to Twitter and is being positioned by Meta as a “friendly” alternative. However, Twitter CEO Elon Musk has accused Meta of cheating and Twitter has sent a legal letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The letter claims that Meta hired former Twitter employees who had access to trade secrets and confidential information, which were then used to develop Threads. Meta denies these allegations. According to Meta, over 30 million people have already signed up for Threads.
The look and features of Threads closely resemble Twitter, with a familiar news feed and reposting options. Twitter’s attorney has accused Meta of “systematic, wilful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property” in the legal letter. The letter demands that Meta stop using any of Twitter’s trade secrets or confidential information and warns of potential legal consequences. Both Twitter and Meta have been contacted for comment.
Elon Musk responded to the legal letter, stating that competition is acceptable, but cheating is not. A Meta spokesperson denied that any former Twitter employees were involved in the development of Threads. Both Musk and Zuckerberg have acknowledged the rivalry between Threads and Twitter. Threads is connected to Instagram but functions as a standalone app. When it was launched in 100 countries, Zuckerberg broke his 11-year silence on Twitter to post a popular meme depicting two nearly identical Spider-Man figures in a stand-off. Musk commented that he prefers being criticized by strangers on Twitter rather than indulging in the false happiness of Instagram.
Twitter’s CEO tweeted that while the platform is often imitated, it cannot be duplicated. Both Meta and Twitter have experienced significant layoffs this year, with Meta announcing a reduction of around 10,000 staff members in April. Twitter also underwent layoffs following Musk’s takeover in October 2021.
Twitter’s move to threaten legal action against Meta’s rival app Threads seems like a drastic step. It raises questions about the competitive landscape in social media and the lengths companies are willing to go to protect their market share.