Apple threatening to ban Twitter from app store: Elon Musk

Twitter CEO Elon Musk on Monday accused American tech giant Apple of threatening to ban the microblogging platform from its App store without disclosing the reasons for such an action.

“Apple has also threatened to withhold Twitter from its App Store, but won't tell us why,” Musk tweeted.



In another tweet, Musk accused the company of “hating” free speech, adding that Apple has “mostly stopped advertising” on the app.

“Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?” the billionaire wrote.

Replying to the tweet, he added: “What’s going on here @tim_cook?”

The action, unconfirmed by Apple, would not be unusual as the company has routinely enforced its rules and previously removed apps such as Gab and Parler.

Parler, which is popular with US conservatives, was restored by Apple in 2021 after the app updated its content and moderation practices.

In subsequent tweets, Musk said: “if free speech is lost even in America, tyranny is all that lies ahead”.


One of Musk’s grievances with Apple is the fee of up to 30% it charges software developers for in-app purchases. He posted a meme suggesting that he was willing to “go to war” with Apple rather than paying the commission.

The fee has drawn criticism and lawsuits from companies such as Epic Games, the maker of ‘Fortnite’, while attracting the scrutiny of regulators around the globe.

Meanwhile, earlier in November, Musk had said that Twitter had seen a “massive” drop in revenue and blamed activist groups for pressuring advertisers.

Multiple companies, including General Mills Inc and luxury automaker Audi of America, have paused advertising on Twitter since Musk completed his purchase. General Motors Co said it had temporarily halted paid advertising on the platform.

Musk, who acquired Twitter for $44 billion last month, has been trying to revamp the platform ever since he took over.