Accuses Apple of Intending to Block Twitter in the App Store, Elon Musk Declares "War"

JAKARTA - Elon Musk accused Apple Inc. of threatening to block Twitter Inc from its app store without saying why. The allegations emerged in a series of tweets on Monday November 28 that also said the iPhone maker had stopped advertising on the social media platform.

The Twitter and Tesla CEO said Apple put pressure on Twitter over content moderation demands.

The move, which hasn't been confirmed by Apple, isn't unusual as the company routinely enforces its rules and previously removed apps like Gab and Parler.

Parler, popular among US conservatives, was reinstated by Apple in 2021 after the app updated its content and moderation practices.

"Apple has largely stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?" Musk tweeted.

He later tagged Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook's Twitter account in another tweet, asking "what's going on here?"

Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the media about Musk's allegations.

"It's not clear to me how far the idea goes in Apple's food chain and without knowing it, it's not clear how seriously to take all of this," said Randal Picker, a professor at the University of Chicago Law School.

According to ad measurement firm Pathmatics, Apple had previously spent around $131.600 on Twitter ads between November 10 and November 16. This amount is down from $220.800 between October 16 and October 22, a week before Musk closed the deal with Twitter.

In the first quarter of 2022, Apple was the top advertiser on Twitter, spending $48 million and accounting for more than 4% of total revenue for the period. This was reported by the Washington Post which, citing internal Twitter documents.

Twitter itself did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the report.

War

Among the list of complaints tweeted by Musk were the up to 30% fees Apple charges software developers for in-app purchases. Musk even posted memes suggesting he was willing to "go to war" with Apple instead of paying commissions.

The fee has drawn criticism and lawsuits from companies such as Epic Games, while also attracting regulatory scrutiny globally.

The commission could weigh on Musk's efforts to increase subscription revenue on Twitter, which is partly to make up for the exodus of advertisers due to content moderation issues.

Companies from General Mills Inc to luxury car maker Audi of America have paused or partially stopped advertising on Twitter since the acquisition. Musk also said earlier this month that Twitter had seen a "massive" drop in revenue.

Revenue from advertising alone accounts for about 90% of Twitter's revenue so far. Musk also blamed activist groups for suppressing advertisers on social media.

Ben Bajarin, head of consumer technology at research firm Creative Strategies, said Musk may have read too much into Apple's regular process of app reviews.

"Apple's app reviews aren't perfect by any means and it's a consistently frustrating process for developers, but from what I've heard, it's a two-way conversation," he said.