The governor noted that Elon Musk is opening Twitter up for free speech, and Apple wants to take that away from him.
New Twitter owner Elon Musk has been attacking iPhone maker Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) over various issues, including a recent threat from the technology company to remove the bluebird app from the App Store. Over the past week, the billionaire has been making reference to the Twitter-Apple relationship, mentioning the 30% cut of all digital sales made through the apps. Coinspeaker reported yesterday that Apple might remove Twitter from its App Store for violating policies. Elon Musk complained about the App Store’s “secret 30% tax” and stated that the tech giant had pulled most advertisements on Twitter.
“Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?”
In addition to the continued jabs at Apple, Musk said he was “going to war” in a now-deleted tweet. Not long ago, he hinted at the possibility of creating his own smartphone. When asked if it would be easy for him to develop a smartphone, he said he would “make an alternative phone” if he had no choice. Neither Apple nor CEO Tim Cook has replied to Musk despite the billionaire tags. As a matter of fact, there was a Twitter update on the App Store last week.
Republicans Support Elon Musk on Twitter vs Apple Matter
While Elon Musk keeps lamenting about Apple, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Ohip Senator-elect J.D. Vance talked about the possible repercussions if Apple knocks off Twitter. The governor noted that Elon Musk is opening Twitter up for free speech, and Apple wants to take that away from him. DeSantis also referred to Musk restoring accounts “that were unfairly and illegitimately suspended for putting out accurate information about COVID.” The governor wrote:
“If Apple responds to that by nuking them from the App Store, I think that would be a huge, huge mistake, and a raw exercise of monopolistic power that would merit a response from the United State Congress.”
In addition, he said in a tweet that no civilized country allows a monopoly, referring to Apple. Although Apple is yet to reply to Elon Musk on the allegations of threatening to pull Twitter off its App Store, the Republicans have made remarks on how to put the company in a tough spot if such happens. Anyway, Apple is not likely to pull Twitter over content as alleged because the iPhone maker seldom targets big brands. The company is mostly concerned with content filtering systems or content moderation procedures, which the social networking company does not lack.
However, Elon Musk may have to pick up a fight with Apple if Twitter tries to manoeuver the platform fees. In this case, Apple will not think twice before pulling down the Twitter app from its App Store. It happened with Epic games’ Fortnite in 2020. Fortnite included a system that allowed iPhone users to buy in-game coins, boycotting Apple’s 30% remittance. Apple removed Fortnite from its marketplace the same day, leading to a legal battle between the two parties.
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