Twitter introduces restrictions to keep traffic to itself in order to grow profitable online advertising business
Since removing its live stream content on professional social networking site, LinkedIn, in June Twitter has since staged a further crack down on data sharing blocking Instagram, Facebook’s smartphone camera app, and Tumblr from utilising its members.
After Twitter failed to renew its partnership with LinkedIn head of content products at LinkedIn, Ryan Roslansky, suggested the decision was a push by the micro-blogging channel to win users back to its own site. Where Twitter once allowed outside channels to use its data to create new applications, restrictions have now been introduced to keep traffic to itself.
The changes implemented by Twitter in recent weeks have drawn comparisons with Apple and has prompted criticism from web developers and app makers. Tubmlr, have since said it was “truly disappointed” at the decision.
A spokesperson for Tumblr added: “Given our history of embracing their platform, this is especially upsetting. Our syndication feature is responsible for hundreds of millions of tweets.”
Despite being just six years-old Twitter boasts more than 200 million members, since it is privately owned the site remains dependent on its large reserves of venture capital. Internal forecasts suggest sales will reach $1 billion in 2014, its advertising business is estimated to have brought in a disappointing $140 million last year.
Speaking to the Telegraph, Dustin Curtis, the developer of Svbtle, a blogging network, commented: “The solution Twitter has taken involves barricading the walled garden, keeping the valuable tweet data inside Twitter, and removing all incentives for people to move to other, similar platforms.
“The problem with this solution is that Twitter was built on the backs of the very developers it is now blocking.
“It now expects those developers to continue supporting Twitter by syndicating content into its platform, but it no longer wants to provide any value to developers in return.”