The game of hide and seek between Elon Musk and Apple is over. The tensions between them are finally erupting in the public square.
For several months now the question was when Musk would declare war with the iPhone maker and CEO Tim Cook. It is now done.
Since Musk took over the social network Twitter (TWTR), he's been trying to find new sources of revenue.
Meantime, he's facing a boycott from many advertisers, including General Motors (GM), General Mills (GIS), Pfizer (PFE), and Stellantis (STLA). These companies have paused their ads as they await the details of Musk's content-management plans for Twitter.
They fear that the social network will become a "hellscape," following assertions by Musk, who defines himself as a free-speech absolutist. This means he considers any message on the platform acceptable so long as it does not violate the law of the country in which it is posted.
Free Speech vs. Brand Safety
Top advertisers are also worried about brand safety and a lack of clarity regarding advertising leadership at Twitter after Musk fired most of the site's executives.
"Freedom of speech is the bedrock of a strong democracy and must take precedence," the billionaire argued on Nov. 25.
In the name of free speech, Musk has reactivated former President Donald Trump's account and accounts known for anti-transgender posts like those of the conservative satirical site Babylon Bee and the Canadian conservative psychologist Jordan Peterson.
Musk also announced a general amnesty for all banned accounts, after having organized a related survey on the platform.
"The people have spoken," he wrote on Nov. 24. "Amnesty begins next week. Vox Populi, Vox Dei."
'What's Going On?'
It is in this context that Musk said on Nov. 28 that Apple (AAPL) had stopped running its ads on Twitter. He even went so far as to publicly challenge CEO Cook by name.
"Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter," the billionaire wrote. "Do they hate free speech in America?"
A few minutes later he tweeted to Cook directly.
"What’s going on here @tim_cook?" Musk asked.
Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
"Apple has spent $40 million on Twitter advertising so far this year," which makes the tech giant "one of Twitter’s top advertisers in 2022, according to Mediaradar.
“Apple has been a major advertiser on Twitter and, even before Elon’s statement today, we’ve seen spend taper in recent months given continued controversy,” said Todd Krizelman, CEO of MediaRadar, the New York provider of advertising intelligence.
He added that Apple’s ad investment in Twitter represents most of its social ad spend overall. To date, 84% of Apple's total social-media spend has gone to Twitter.
Ad revenue made up more than 91% of Twitter's revenue in the second quarter, with the rest coming from subscriptions. Musk is trying to rebalance things, but the billionaire is aware that he needs advertisers. At the beginning of November he had threatened them that he was going to publicly shame them.
By first attacking Apple, the largest company in the world based on market value, the Techno King seems to want to send a message to other advertisers that he was not kidding.
Besides advertising, Musk and Apple are also in conflict over their approach to acceptable content.
As app distributors, Apple via the Apple Store and Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google via Google Play have strict policies regarding hateful speech.
"When people install an app from the App Store, they want to feel confident that it’s safe to do so -- that the app doesn’t contain upsetting or offensive content, won’t damage their device, and isn’t likely to cause physical harm from its use," the iPhone maker says in the Apple Store guidelines. "If you’re looking to shock and offend people, the App Store isn’t the right place for your app."
Phil Schiller, who is responsible for leading the App Store and Apple Events, left Twitter after Musk said he was reactivating Trump's account. Schiller didn't give an explanation for his decision to deactivate his account, but it's curious that it happened right after Musk's announcement.
Musk has threatened to make a phone if Apple and Alphabet blocked Twitter.
