UPDATE DAY
After having “declared war” on Apple and accusing the Apple brand of all evils, Elon Musk assured Wednesday that the “misunderstanding” was resolved.
Twitter's new owner thanked Apple CEO Tim Cook for showing him around the group's “very nice headquarters” in Silicon Valley.
“Good conversation. Among other things, we resolved the misunderstanding about the possibility of Twitter being removed from the App Store. Tim made it clear that Apple never considered doing it,” Elon Musk summed up in another tweet.
On Monday, the tempestuous entrepreneur claimed that Apple “threatened” to remove Twitter from its App Store, and “refused” to “say why”, after a series of bellicose tweets accusing the iPhone maker of “censoring and abuse his dominant position in the market.
The billionaire's outburst came as the relaunch of his flagship project, “Blue Verified”, scheduled for Friday was postponed, according to the specialized newsletter The Platformer.
Blue Verified, the new subscription to Twitter for eight dollars a month, mixes an existing paid plan (to benefit from practical advantages) and the authentication of accounts, until now free and reserved for personalities and organizations.
Its initial rollout on Nov. 9 resulted in a rash of fake accounts impersonating athletes, businesses, and Elon Musk himself, among others. He was suspended after two days.
But even if it is well implemented, 30% of the amount will in fact go to Apple and Google, which control the two main mobile operating systems, iOS and Android.
All mobile applications who want to be present on smartphones must respect the very similar rules of the two American companies, from the moderation of content to the payment of a commission of 15% to 30% on all user expenditure.
About iPhones, the Apple App Store is a must.
Elon Musk has accused Tim Cook's group of “secretly suppressing freedom of expression” and applying a “secret 30% tax
But he “clearly needs the money” and he “is having a fit because he doesn't want to pay Apple,” said independent analyst Rob Enderle.
The entrepreneur is not the first to rebel against the “Apple tax”, as its many detractors call it.
The boss of Spotify has thus risen to the Wednesday slot on Twitter, again accusing Apple of “giving itself every advantage while harming innovation and consumers.”