Elon Musk says Apple threatened to remove Twitter from App Store
Elon Musk on Monday went on a tear against Apple, Twitter’s top advertiser, after he said the company threatened to block the social network from its App Store without explanation and mostly had stopped advertising on Twitter.
The tirade underscored the immense power that Apple, the world’s most valuable company, wields over the fate of the world’s richest man’s gamble on Twitter. The rant also signaled the role that Apple could play as a check against Musk’s chaotic reign at the social network; Apple previously has revoked App Store privileges from companies that broke its security policies or hosted violence and other problematic content.
If the company were to block Twitter from its App Store, new users would be unable to download the Twitter app on their iPhones and iPads, and existing users would be unable to access updates. The alleged threat adds to the advertiser pressure, staff departures and regulatory scrutiny confronting Musk as he seeks to overhaul years of Twitter policies and account suspensions in his quest to push a “free speech” agenda.
In the first quarter, Apple was the top advertiser on Twitter, spending $48 million on ads on the social network, according to a document that was reviewed by The Washington Post and was compiled from internal Twitter data. Apple’s spending accounted for more than 4% of Twitter’s revenue that quarter.
Musk sought to put pressure on the company and CEO Tim Cook in a series of tweets for pausing that spending, a pause that comes in the middle of the holiday shopping season.
Apple did not respond to requests for comments.
Musk signaled in a meme that he intends to “go to war” with Apple.
The tweets immediately caught the attention of Washington lawmakers, who have proposed bipartisan legislation that aims to dismantle the power that Apple and Google wield through their app stores.
“This is why we need to end the App Store duopoly before the end of this year,” tweeted Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., who has co-led efforts to pass antitrust legislation targeting large tech companies. “No one should have this kind of market power.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said President Joe Biden would continue to point out the responsibility that platforms have to prevent their services from being used to incite violence.
Apple and Google could see pressure from liberal groups and civil-rights organizations to ensure that Musk’s Twitter is adhering to their policies.
Apple and Google have been criticized for haphazardly enforcing their appstore standards. The companies faced backlash from conservatives following their decision to ban Parler, a social network popular with supporters of former President Donald Trump, in the fallout of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The move was a departure for Apple, which historically has reached out to developers to work with them on improving their content moderation capabilities.