Twitter threatens legal action over Threads app

Twitter is considering ineligible enactment against Meta implicit its fast-growing rival app Threads.

Threads, which was launched to millions connected Wednesday, is akin to Twitter and has been pitched by Meta bosses arsenic a "friendly" alternative.

Twitter's Elon Musk said "competition is fine, cheating is not" - but Meta denied claims successful a ineligible missive that ex-Twitter unit helped make Threads.

More than 30 cardinal radical person signed up for the caller app, according to Meta.

The architecture of Threads is akin to Twitter, BBC News exertion newsman James Clayton noted. He said the quality provender and the reposting were incredibly familiar.

In a determination archetypal reported by news outlet Semafor, Twitter lawyer Alex Spiro sent a missive to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg connected Wednesday accusing Meta of "systematic, wilful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter's commercialized secrets and different intelligence property" to make Threads.

Specifically, Mr Spiro alleged that Meta hired dozens of erstwhile Twitter employees who "had and proceed to person entree to Twitter's commercialized secrets and different highly confidential information" that yet helped Meta make what helium termed the "copycat" Threads app.

"Twitter intends to strictly enforce its intelligence spot rights, and demands that Meta instrumentality contiguous steps to halt utilizing immoderate Twitter commercialized secrets oregon different highly confidential information," the missive says.

"Twitter reserves each rights, including, but not constricted to, the close to question some civilian remedies and injunctive alleviation without further notice."

BBC News, which has seen a transcript of the letter, has contacted some Meta and Twitter for comment.

Mr Musk said that "competition is fine, cheating is not" successful effect to a station connected Twitter that referred to the ineligible letter.

On Threads, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone posted that "no 1 connected the Threads engineering squad is simply a erstwhile Twitter worker - that's conscionable not a thing".

Both Mr Musk and Mr Zuckerberg person acknowledged the rivalry implicit Threads, which is linked to Instagram but works arsenic a standalone app.

As it launched successful 100 countries, Mr Zuckerberg broke much than 11 years of soundlessness connected Twitter to station a highly fashionable meme of 2 astir identical Spider-Man figures pointing astatine each other, indicating a stand-off.

Shortly after, and arsenic the connection "Threads" trended globally connected his platform, Mr Musk said: "It is infinitely preferable to beryllium attacked by strangers connected Twitter, than indulge successful the mendacious happiness of hide-the-pain Instagram."

Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino said successful a tweet connected Thursday that portion the platform, which has antecedently reported astir 260 cardinal monthly users, is "often imitated" it "can ne'er beryllium duplicated".

Both Meta and Twitter person undertaken important layoffs this year, with Meta announcing successful April that it would chopped unit levels by astir 10,000.

Twitter mislaid astir fractional of its 7,500 employees successful waves of redundancies pursuing Mr Musk's takeover past October.