Twitter threatens legal action against Meta over Threads: report

Twitter has issued a legal threat against Meta regarding their text-based app called Threads, as stated in a letter obtained by Semafor.

The letter, addressed to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and dated Wednesday, comes from Alex Spiro, an attorney representing Twitter. Spiro accuses Meta of illegally utilizing Twitter’s trade secrets and intellectual property by hiring former Twitter employees to create a similar app.

Since its launch on Wednesday night, Meta’s Threads app has garnered millions of sign-ups. Developed by Meta’s Instagram team, the app arrives at a time when many users are seeking alternatives to Twitter to escape the controversial oversight of Elon Musk, who acquired the platform for $44 billion last year.

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In response to Spiro’s letter, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone stated on Thursday that no former Twitter employees are part of the Threads engineering team, refuting the allegations.

The letter from Spiro, first reported by Semafor, emphasizes Twitter’s intention to protect its intellectual property rights and mentions the possibility of seeking civil remedies or injunctive relief. It serves as a formal notice for Meta to preserve relevant documents for a potential dispute.

The Big Big News contacted Spiro and Twitter for further information, but Twitter’s response to the inquiry consisted of a poop emoji, their standard automated reply to reporters.

While Elon Musk has not directly addressed the potential legal action, he has responded to sarcastic comments about the Threads launch. In one instance, Musk replied to a tweet suggesting that Meta’s app was created through the copy and paste function with a laughing emoji.

Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino has not publicly commented on the letter, but she seemingly referred to the Threads launch in a tweet on Thursday. Yaccarino wrote, “We’re often imitated — but the Twitter community can never be duplicated.”

Nevertheless, analysts believe that Meta’s new app could pose a significant challenge for Twitter, considering the excitement surrounding its launch and impressive download numbers thus far.

However, the app’s success is not guaranteed. Observers highlight Meta’s history of starting standalone apps that were later shut down, and note that Threads is still in its early stages. Time will determine its fate.

Concerns about data privacy have also been raised regarding Meta’s new app. Although Threads was launched in over 100 countries on Wednesday, it is notably unavailable in the European Union due to the region’s strict data privacy regulations.

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More about Threads app

• Twitter threatens legal action against Meta over Threads
• Meta denies hiring former Twitter employees for Threads app
• Concerns over data privacy in Meta’s Threads app
• Twitter’s history of enforcing intellectual property rights
• Meta’s track record of standalone app development
• European Union’s data privacy regulations