Twitter vs. Meta: A Fight Over the ‘Threads’ App and Intellectual Property
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Twitter is reportedly upset with Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, over its new app called ‘Threads.’ Twitter believes that Threads is a copycat of its platform and is threatening to take legal action, alleging that Meta hired former Twitter engineers to develop the app, which it sees as a violation of its intellectual property rights.
However, Meta has denied these allegations, stating that none of the engineers working on Threads have previously worked for Twitter. Twitter’s owner, Elon Musk, has also accused Meta of cheating. In a letter to Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter expressed concerns about Meta stealing its trade secrets and confidential information.
Twitter claimed that Meta recruited ex-Twitter employees who had access to these secrets and accused them of improperly retaining Twitter documents and devices. Twitter asserts that Meta used this information to expedite the development of Threads, breaching the law and its obligations to Twitter.
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Twitter has asked Meta to preserve any documents that could be relevant in a potential legal dispute between the two companies. Elon Musk commented on the situation, stating that competition is acceptable, but cheating is not. Meta has responded to Twitter’s claims, rejecting them and asserting that none of the engineers working on Threads have ever been employed by Twitter.
Threads gained popularity quickly after its launch, as some users were dissatisfied with recent decisions made by Twitter, such as tweet-viewing limits and paid verification. According to Mark Zuckerberg, the app gained 30 million sign-ups within 24 hours. However, Threads does not have all the same features as Twitter, as users cannot post long videos, have chatrooms like Twitter Spaces, send direct messages, or use hashtags.
Social Media users reacted with memes claiming that Threads copying Twitter completely:
After two hours of using Threads from Meta. bro
I can say it's just a bad copy of Twitter. 😂😂 Threads literally copied everything from Twitter 😂#Threads #twitter #ثريدز pic.twitter.com/ncABIDQZl3— Abdelhak 👑🛡️ (@Abdelhak_bnr) July 6, 2023
https://twitter.com/I_Saba785/status/1677079831568105472
Bro thinks he's him #Twitter #Threads pic.twitter.com/y3DqB1dEz8
— Rahul Nagar (@notrahxll) July 7, 2023
Me posting my tweets on threads and my threads as tweets.#threadapp #Threads #ThreadsApp pic.twitter.com/17NC2lWLC3
— Nupur Saigal (@_theaxeeffect_) July 7, 2023
