Twitter bans Tweetbot and other third-party apps

Twitter has now officially banned third-party applications. They have updated their Developer Agreement rules, stating that you can’t use Twitter’s API or content to “create or attempt to create a substitute or similar service or product to the Twitter Applications”.

A week ago, the platform was reported to have blocked third-party apps’ access, and has not offered any explanation as to why it had done so. Apps like Tweetbot were also out of the loop, as they said on 13 January that they have “reached out to Twitter for more details, but haven’t heard back”.

However, on 17 January, Twitter’s account broke the silence by tweeting that it was “enforcing its long-standing API rules,” which “may result in some apps not working”. Some commentators were understandably unsatisfied.

“There was no advance notice for its creators, customers just got a weird error, and no one is explaining what’s going on. We had no chance to thank customers who have been with us for over a decade. Instead, it’s just another scene in their ongoing shit show,” said Craig Hockenberry, principal at Twitterific developer The Iconfactory.

Besides Twitter Dev’s tweet and the change in the Developer Agreement, there has not been an official statement or explanation by the platform or from Elon Musk himself. The Verge also noted that Twitter doesn’t have a communications department to contact, either.

Twitter has been struggling financially—as many advertisers have also left the platform since Musk took over the platform. Musk has since been trying to find ways to boost the company’s revenue, like considering selling unused Twitter usernames. This new rule change seems like another thing that Twitter can eventually make money from, as it could encourage users to subscribe to Twitter Blue.

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