In a recent development, popular microblogging platform Twitter has issued a letter to Meta platforms, the parent company of Facebook, threatening legal action over its new Threads app. The letter, signed by lawyer Alex Spiro on behalf of Twitter, alleges that Meta has engaged in the systemic and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property.
Spiro claims that Meta has recruited several former Twitter employees and tasked them with using their knowledge of Twitter’s trade secrets to develop the Threads app within a short period of time. The letter further demands that Meta preserve all documents related to the recruitment, hiring, and onboarding of these former Twitter employees, as well as the development of the Threads app.
Linda Yaccarino, CEO of Twitter, took to her Twitter handle to emphasize the unique community built by Twitter’s users, stating that the Twitter community cannot be duplicated despite attempts to imitate it.
The letter from Twitter accuses Meta of deliberately assigning former Twitter employees to develop the Threads app, utilizing Twitter’s trade secrets and other highly confidential information in violation of state and federal law, as well as the employees’ ongoing obligations to Twitter.
Twitter intends to enforce its intellectual property rights and demands that Meta immediately cease using any Twitter trade secrets or confidential information. Twitter reserves the right to seek civil remedies and injunctive relief to prevent further retention, disclosure, or use of its intellectual property by Meta.
Additionally, Meta is explicitly prohibited from crawling or scraping Twitter’s followers or following data, as stated in Twitter’s Terms of Service. Twitter reserves all rights, including seeking legal remedies, if any crawling or scraping is conducted without its prior consent.
The letter concludes by notifying Meta that it must preserve any relevant documents pertaining to the dispute between Twitter, Meta, and former Twitter employees who now work for Meta.
This legal dispute between Twitter and Meta highlights the intensifying competition and tensions among major social media platforms as they vie for users and seek to protect their intellectual property and trade secrets. The outcome of this dispute will likely have significant implications for the relationship between these two tech giants.
