Photo by: Richard Drew | Credit: AP
Twitter has threatened to sue Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, over its new Threads app. Threads is a standalone app that allows users to share photos, videos, and text with a select group of friends. The app is designed to be a more intimate and personal experience than Meta’s other social media platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram.
Twitter claims that Meta’s Threads app infringes on its patents for its own Fleets feature, which was discontinued in August 2021. Fleets was a short-lived ephemeral messaging feature that allowed users to share disappearing posts with their followers.
In a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, said that Meta’s Threads app is “a near-exact copy” of Fleets. Spiro also said that Meta had hired several former Twitter employees who had worked on Fleets, and that these employees had used their knowledge of Fleets to develop Threads.
Spiro demanded that Meta stop developing and distributing Threads, and that the company pay Twitter damages. He also said that Twitter was “prepared to take all necessary legal action” to protect its intellectual property.
Meta has not yet responded to Twitter’s threat of a lawsuit.
Here are some of the reasons why Twitter is suing Meta over Threads:
- Meta’s Threads app is a near-exact copy of Twitter’s Fleets feature.
- Meta hired several former Twitter employees who had worked on Fleets.
- These employees used their knowledge of Fleets to develop Threads.
- Twitter is concerned that Meta is trying to stifle competition by copying its features.
- Twitter is seeking damages for the infringement of its intellectual property.
The lawsuit is a sign of the growing rivalry between Twitter and Meta. Both companies are vying for dominance in the social media market, and they are not afraid to use legal means to protect their interests. The outcome of the lawsuit could have a significant impact on the future of social media.
