Elon Musk & Tim Cook resolve differences

Twitter's Elon Musk & Tim Cook, CEO of Apple Inc., have cleared the misunderstandings that followed when the tech company paused its advertisements on Twitter and hinted at removing it from the app store.

In a matter of a day, Elon Musk and Tim Cook have resolved the misunderstandings. Musk met Cook at the Apple headquarters to clarify if the tech giant had decided to unlist Twitter from its App Store. Apple had also paused advertising on Twitter after its representative media agency, Omnicon Media Group recommended a break.

Ever since his takeover at Twitter, Elon Musk has been involved in multiple controversies be it sacking roughly 7000+ employees (over 200 of them in India), becoming the sole director of the platform, his ‘pay for verification’ blue tick flop and ultimately lifting Twitter bans on controversial personalities. The erratic changes made in Twitter leadership have concerned the advertisers about their brand safety and investment. It resulted in some of the top ad spenders on the platform pulling out of Twitter. 

Also Read: Writer’s Corner: How long will I continue to be on Elon’s Twitter?

This got Elon Tweeting in a panic, taking on Apple as his enemy. He claimed that Apple hates free speech by tagging Tim Cook and asking him for a comment. Following which, he said the tech company censors software developers by putting 30% tax on in-app purchases. He also blamed Apple for threatening the platform for pulling off of its App Store, without any specific reason. 

Apple invited Elon Musk to their headquarters in a bid to maintain friendly relations, and he took to Twitter to update users of the same. He

Good conversation. Among other things, we resolved the misunderstanding about Twitter potentially being removed from the App Store. Tim was clear that Apple never considered doing so.

While it is not clear if Apple will resume advertising now, Twitter will start bleeding without Apple and exodus of other advertisers. Elon’s panicky Tweets are primarily related to the fact that Twitter has a lot to lose without Apple’s support. Apple’s ad spends were once over $100 million annually. More than the loss of revenue, Twitter has chances of losing access to 1.5 billion devices worldwide should Apple ever decide to take the platform of their App Store. 

Among the ones to pause advertising on the platform are Chevrolet, Chipotle, Ford, Jeep, Volkswagen, General Motors, and General Mills. Majority of brands have quietly pulled out or reduced their ad spends on Twitter, while others have publicly issued statements about their departure.