WASHINGTON – Apple chief executive Tim Cook never considered removing Twitter from its App Store despite prior reports that the tech giant was threatening to do so, Twitter owner Elon Musk said.
“Good conversation. Among other things, we resolved the misunderstanding about Twitter potentially being removed from the App Store. Tim was clear that Apple never considered doing so,” Musk said yesterday after a meeting at the Apple headquarters, reported Sputnik.
On Monday, Musk said that Apple threatened to remove Twitter from the App Store, which would make the platform inaccessible to a significant share of the mobile phone market.
Speculation about the purported move was fuelled by reports that Apple executive Phil Schiller was leaving Twitter in the wake of Musk’s reform of the social media platform.
Musk acquired Twitter in October, vowing to bolster protections for free speech. The company has since reinstated many previously suspended accounts, including those of former US president Donald Trump.
Musk said he will create a new smartphone if Apple or Google remove Twitter from their app stores.
Meanwhile, Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview that Apple’s control over what sort of applications were accessible on their devices is unique and problematic.
“If you look at all the major computing platforms… Apple’s stands out as the only one where one company can control what apps get on the device,” Zuckerberg said yesterday.
“I do think it is problematic for one company to be able to control what kind of app experiences (one can) get on the device.” – Bernama, December 1, 2022
