INTERNATIONAL: In a clear sign of Twitter's concern over Meta's new Twitter rival, Threads, the social media giant is threatening Meta with a lawsuit. Twitter's attorney sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, accusing the company of trade secret theft through the hiring of former Twitter employees. This move by Twitter indicates that it sees Threads as a significant competitive threat.
The letter, written by Alex Spiro, an outside lawyer for Twitter owner Elon Musk, alleges that Meta engaged in the "systematic, willful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter's trade secrets and other intellectual property." Musk responded to reports of the letter by tweeting, "Competition is fine, cheating is not."
According to the letter, Meta hired former Twitter employees who allegedly retained Twitter documents and electronic devices, and Meta involved them in developing Threads. Spiro stated that Twitter intends to strictly enforce its intellectual property rights and demands that Meta immediately stop using any Twitter trade secrets or highly confidential information.
In response, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone flatly dismissed the accusations, stating that no one on the Threads engineering team is a former Twitter employee.
While Meta's acquisition of Twitter has faced challenges from smaller microblogging platforms like Mastodon and Bluesky, Twitter has not threatened them with litigation. However, Threads has experienced rapid growth since its launch, with 30 million user sign-ups reported by Zuckerberg on the first day alone. The app quickly became the number-one free app on the iOS App Store.
Legal experts suggest that the threat of litigation may be part of Twitter's strategy to slow down Meta. It remains to be seen if the issue will lead to an actual lawsuit or if it's an attempt to complicate Meta's operations.
Threads, Meta's rival to Twitter, has already garnered significant attention, with over 30 million downloads within the first few hours of its launch. The app leverages Meta's access to billions of Instagram users and features a similar look to Twitter. Celebrities and companies have already established accounts on Threads, including Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, Netflix, Spotify, and Amazon.
The clash between Meta's Zuckerberg and Twitter's Musk has been ongoing, with both exchanging barbs and even threatening a real-life mixed martial arts cage match. Twitter's response to Threads by threatening a lawsuit suggests the intensification of their rivalry.
While Meta faces criticism in Europe over its handling of personal data, its integration of key features from other platforms, such as Instagram's Stories and Reels, has been successful. Brokerages have raised their price target on Meta, and analysts believe that Meta's existing ad relationships from Instagram and Facebook will contribute to Threads' revenue.
The battle between Twitter and Meta continues to unfold, with the future of Threads and the competition between the two social media giants hanging in the balance.
