Twitter has threatened to sue Meta over its new Threads app. Threads, which was launched over 24 hours ago across the iOS and Android operating systems, is a text-based social app that works similarly to Twitter.
Twitter is accusing Meta of poaching former employees to create the new platform. As of press time, Threads had passed over 70 million sign-ups, and there seems to be no slowing down in terms of the numbers.
Shortly after the launch of the app, a lawyer for the microblogging company, Alex Spiro, sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg accusing Twitter of engaging in unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property.
“Twitter intends to strictly enforce its intellectual property rights and demands that Meta take immediate steps to stop using any Twitter trade secrets or other highly confidential information,” Spiro wrote in the letter, as shared online by Semafor. “Twitter reserves all rights, including, but not limited to, the right to seek both civil remedies and injunctive relief without further notice to prevent any further retention, disclosure, or use of its intellectual property by Meta.”
Meta’s communications director, Andy Stone, while responding to Twitter’s letter in a post on Threads, stated that, “To be clear: No one on the Threads engineering team is a former Twitter employee—that’s just not a thing.”
For privacy and data-related reasons, Threads has yet to make its entry into Europe. That said, over 70 million people have already onboarded Threads on the first day is a good sign for Meta and a big worry for Twitter.
It is pretty obvious that Threads is and will continue to attract millions of unhappy users on Twitter, and this should concern Elon Musk and his team.
Unlike Twitter, Threads allows users to post up to 500 characters and boast similar features to the former.
Twitter should be worried because with Threads, the competition is going to differ from what Bluesky, Mastodon, and others can offer.
While Threads may have enjoyed a massive and unprecedented start, it is important to stress the fact that there is still a long way to go to catch up with Twitter. Of course, Twitter has its many faults, and a few changes here and there could calm some nerves out there.
