Is this the end of the new competitor app from the Facebook group Meta? According to media reports, Twitter is threatening to sue – meanwhile, threads already had several million users on the first day.
According to a media report, the Twitter group is threatening its competitor Meta with a lawsuit over the recently launched competitor app Threads.
A lawyer working for Twitter, Alex Spiro, accused Meta in a letter of using confidential information and internal knowledge of the short message service for threads, wrote the website “Semafor” and published a copy of the letter.
Meta got the insights by hiring ex-Twitter employees to create a “copycat” app, it said. Meta spokesman Andy Stone denied the allegations. No one on Threads’ tech team was previously on Twitter, he said.
In the letter to Meta, attorney Spiro wrote that Twitter intends to “rigorously enforce its intellectual property rights.” The short message service also has the right to bring civil actions or an injunctive relief.
“Competition is okay, cheating is not”
Twitter owner Elon Musk commented on the report on his platform, tweeting: “Competition is okay, cheating isn’t.” Threads was launched in more than 100 countries on Thursday night, but initially not in the EU.
The Meta group previously described Threads as a text-based version of the photo and video platform Instagram, which also belongs to Meta, which should offer “a new, separate space for real-time updates and public conversations”.
According to Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg, Threads already had 30 million users in the first half day.
Problems with Twitter take advantage of Threads app
Threads could resonate well with those Twitter users who have been scared off by a series of unpopular changes since it was acquired by tech billionaire Elon Musk in the fall of 2022, or who are looking for alternatives.
Musk has laid off thousands of employees since the takeover last October. Many of them found new jobs at other tech companies.
Stars like Shakira and actor Jack Black secured an account within the first few hours. Airbnb, Guinness World Records, Netflix, Vogue magazine and other media were also immediately represented on the platform.
Future of the offer still uncertain
Threads is considered to be Twitter’s strongest rival so far, partly because the app can draw on more than a billion existing user accounts.
Because Instagram users can also log into the new app with their existing user names and follow the same accounts – new users must first create an Instagram account.
Some analysts believe Meta’s new offering could cause a significant headache for Twitter. They refer to the hype surrounding the start of threads, but observers are far from certain that this offer will also be successful in the long term.