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Is the Twitter app in danger of being banned by Apple and Google?

Less moderated and subscription-based, Elon Musk’s Twitter could draw the ire of Apple and Google, the guarantors of their respective app stores.

Could Twitter disappear from the Google and Apple stores? According to Bloomberg, the new subscription model desired by Elon Musk for his social network could directly clash with the rules established by the two technology giants.

Because, for Twitter to reach profitability, the billionaire is betting mainly on two big changes: freedom of expression and the increase in subscription revenue. But these two points introduce an inevitable balance of power between the social network and the other two American giants.

Editorial and financial imperatives

Since most users connect via their smartphone, Twitter is inevitably subject to the rules dictated by the two groups. Guarantors of the security of their app store, App Store for iPhone and Google Play Store for Android, Apple and Google impose editorial and financial requirements on the apps they offer.

Thus, the moderation that Elon Musk wants to minimize in favor of freedom of expression seems essential to continue distributing on iPhone and Android. Recent waves of layoffs at Twitter have “significantly” affected moderation teams. The result is a less intense fight against hateful content and misinformation.

A commission for the benefit of both groups

In January, the Talk app was removed from the App Store after it left messages inciting hate and violence on the sidelines of the attack on the Capitol in Washington on January 6. To be reintroduced, the social network had to review its content moderation policy.

The same penalty could thus await Twitter. Apple boss Tim Cook himself hinted that moderation would be a decisive factor in keeping the app on the App Store, recalls Macg. The leader did not stop reassuring: “They say that they are going to continue to moderate and I am counting on them to do so,” he said.

Former Twitter moderation manager Yoel Roth is also concerned about potential breaches of Apple and Google guidelines, in a column published on the New York Times.

But it is on the wallet side that the exchanges are likely to be tense between Twitter and the Apple and Google duo. Given the commitment of the subscription to obtain certification for the application and appear higher in internal searches, the application stores are rubbing their hands. Because each payment made on a smartphone induces a commission for the benefit of both groups. Respectively, 15 and 30% (the first year, then 15%) of the sums paid are collected by Google or Apple.

A duopoly criticized by Elon Musk

Bloomberg calculated the commissions that Apple and Google would receive from the first year of subscribing to Twitter Blue. If just 1% of the 250 million daily active users opted for the $8 a month subscription, Apple would pocket $72 million for Apple and Google $36 million.

Elon Musk has long questioned the commissions taken by the two IT groups. Criticizing the duopoly formed by Apple and Google, the billionaire believes that taxes are ten times higher than they should be. And the issue of commissions could well be grounds for divorce.

This commission is already at the center of the conflict between the iPhone maker and Epic Games, the publisher of Fortnite. This financial conflict still prevents iPhone owners from downloading the game from the App Store.

Author: pierre monnier
Source: BFM TV

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