[Updated] Twitter-Apple App Store feud gets Android users talking: Will Google also delist app from Play Store & should you be concerned?

New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….

Original story (published on November 29, 2022) follows:

The news of Twitter’s acquisition by Elon Musk is no stranger to anyone including the chaos it ensued. But what many of you may not know is the recent Twitter-Apple feud.

Apparently, Musk’s recent tweet suggested that Apple has ceased most of its advertising on Twitter and also threatened the company to remove the micro-blogging platform from the App Store without stating any reason.

It comes after a poll posted by Elon Musk asking whether Apple should ‘publish all censorship actions’ it has ever taken.

There were also rumors suggesting that Apple has deleted all its tweets on Twitter but that was never the case. The truth is Apple has never tweeted anything in the first place.

Considering the fact that it’s quite trivial for companies like Google and Apple to censor disagreeable content, it doesn’t come across as a surprise.

Apple along with Google censored Parler last year when they hit number one. They too wanted to promote free speech. Now they want to censor Twitter too.
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Apple, Facebook and Google censor tons of free speech. And they know it. It suits their purposes.
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But even if Apple and Google decided to boot Twitter from their respective app stores, Musk revealed that he’ll willingly enter the smartphone market.

Although Google was never directly a part of the ongoing Twitter-Apple feud, it has seemingly left many concerned if it could also follow in Apple’s footsteps and withdraw Twitter from the Play Store.

I don’t particularly find it amusing but if Apple does pull the app I’ll just sell my iPhone and get a pixel 7. Google is also rumored to remove twitter from the play store. At least you can side load on android.
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If the Google Play Store stops carrying Twitter, I will transition away from their products.
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Oddly enough, a number of users (1,2,3,4) are also talking about switching from iPhone to Android in case Twitter gets removed from the App Store.

Here are some alternatives

While the tension revolving around companies like Google and Apple de-listing Twitter looms large, people need not worry much about it.

Because even if that happens, both Apple and Android users still have the option to access the Twitter browser version.

Moreover, Android is open-source so accessing the Twitter app won’t be much of an issue.

Maybe just use Android? It’s open source and relatively easy to modify. AOSPs have no Google services on them. Plus you wouldn’t need to port apps like Twitter since they natively run on Android.
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Lastly, users shouldn’t forget that they can always install the APK file by sideloading on any Android device.

Even if Twitter isn’t safe on the Play Store, you can always install the APK by sideloading on android. Android is far more user-friendly in this sense.
But good luck jailbreaking your iPhone just to install twitter.
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Unfortunately, Google and Apple haven’t commented on the rumor regarding delisting of Twitter from the Play Store and App Store, respectively.

We’ll keep tabs on the latest developments and update this article accordingly.

04:40 pm (IST): Apple’s CEO Tim Cook has reportedly confirmed to Elon Musk in a recent meeting that they have no plans to remove Twitter from App Store.

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. (Source)

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