Twitter is considering taking legal action against Meta, the parent company of Facebook, over its recently launched Threads,app which is rapidly gaining popularity. Threads app bears a striking resemblance to Twitter and has been presented by Meta as a “friendly” alternative. Elon Musk, CEO of Twitter, stated that competition is acceptable but cheating is not. However, Meta has denied allegations made in a legal letter that former Twitter employees assisted in the development of Threads.
According to Meta, more than 30 million users have already signed up for the app since its launch, although this is still less than a tenth of Twitter’s estimated 350 million users, as reported by Statista. Comparatively, it took Twitter four years to accumulate the same number of users as Threads did in just one day. It is worth noting that Twitter built its user base from scratch, while Threads was able to leverage the existing two billion monthly users on Instagram, as claimed by Meta.
James Clayton, a technology reporter for BBC News, observed that the look and feel of Threads app closely resemble those of Twitter. He highlighted the similarities in the news feed and reposting features, stating that they are “incredibly familiar.” However, under US copyright law, ideas are not protected, which means that Twitter would need to demonstrate that its intellectual property, such as programming code, was infringed upon in order to succeed in court.
Notably, in 2012, Meta obtained a patent for “communicating a newsfeed,” the system used by Facebook to display the latest posts. In a letter sent to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg by Twitter attorney Alex Spiro, it was alleged that Meta engaged dozens of former Twitter employees who had access to Twitter’s trade secrets and confidential information. Spiro accused Meta of “systematic, wilful, and unlawful misappropriation” of Twitter’s intellectual property to create the “copycat” Threads app. The letter demanded that Meta immediately cease using any Twitter trade secrets or highly confidential information and warned of potential legal action.
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BBC News has reached out to both Meta and Twitter for comments regarding the matter. Elon Musk responded to a Twitter post mentioning the legal letter by stating, “competition is fine, cheating is not.” Meanwhile, Andy Stone, a spokesperson for Meta, refuted the claim that former Twitter employees were involved in the development of Threads, stating that “no one on the Threads app engineering team is a former Twitter employee.”
Threads app, which operates as a standalone app but is linked to Instagram, has sparked acknowledgement from both Musk and Zuckerberg. Upon the app’s launch in 100 countries, Zuckerberg broke an 11-year silence on Twitter to share a popular meme depicting two nearly identical Spider-Man figures pointing at each other in a stand-off. As “Threads” trended globally on Twitter, Musk commented, “It is infinitely preferable to be attacked by strangers on Twitter than indulge in the false happiness of hide-the-pain Instagram.”
While Threads app has attracted 30 million users thus far, Sarah Kunst, managing director at venture capital firm Cleo Capital, believes that the app will continue to grow steadily, especially given its easy cross-posting capabilities to other platforms like Instagram. She also suggested that Threads app could provide a “brand-safe environment” for existing Instagram advertisers who are interested in allocating some of their budget to the new app.
A comparison between Threads app and Twitter reveals some differences. Threads allows posts of up to 500 characters, while Twitter restricts posts to 280 characters. Additionally, Threads permits 5-minute videos, while Twitter limits videos to 2 minutes and 20 seconds. Both platforms allow the sharing of links and photos, as well as post deletion. However, Twitter offers additional features such as direct messaging, trending stories, and the use of hashtags, which Threads does not provide. Threads app does offer a verification feature, but Twitter reserves it for paid access, along with longer posts, videos, and an editing function.
In recent months, both Meta and Twitter have undergone significant staff reductions. Meta announced in April that it would be cutting approximately 10,000 employees, while Twitter experienced multiple waves of layoffs, resulting in a substantial reduction of its workforce, possibly as high as 80%, following Elon Musk’s takeover in October last year.
In a tweet on Thursday, Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino emphasized that although the platform is often imitated, it can never be duplicated.
The potential legal battle between Twitter and Meta over the alleged infringement of intellectual property rights and trade secrets will be closely monitored. The outcome could have significant implications for both companies and the future of app development.
