• Last week a number of third-party apps noted an inability to access Twitter, with APIs failing to connect.
• Now Twitter has banned said platforms, citing a long-standing policy regarding its APIs.
• The platform has also updated its developer agreement to reflect its recent decision regarding third-party app clients.

We reported last week on a number of third-party app clients that were struggling to connect to Twitter, with no word from the social media platform at the time. These struggles continued in the following days, with clients like Tweetbot and Twitterrific having no access whatsoever.

Yesterday, however, Twitter finally provided an update on the matter, refining its user agreement with developers. Here it is enforcing a reportedly long-standing rule regarding the use of APIs on Twitter, and now restricting access to third-party app clients. The platform does not explain which rules have been broken, or indeed whether there is some sort of recourse to be taken to rectify the situation.

Here the newly updated agreement states that it is banning developers who, “use or access the Licensed Materials to create or attempt to create a substitute or similar service or product to the Twitter Applications.”

This ostensibly means the aforementioned third-party clients are not able to make use of Twitter.

As a result, many developers have begun pulling down their applications. In a blog post confirming that Twitterrific is being discontinued, CEO Sean Heber, noted that the changes at Twitter since Musk took over have made operations untenable.

“We are sorry to say that the app’s sudden and undignified demise is due to an unannounced and undocumented policy change by an increasingly capricious Twitter – a Twitter that we no longer recognize as trustworthy nor want to work with any longer,” explained Heber.

“But, as much as it pains us to say it, Twitterrific for iOS and macOS have now been removed from both App Stores. If you had a subscription on iOS, it will be automatically cancelled by the App Store,” he added.

As Engadget rightfully points out, many of these third-party clients have existed in collaboration with Twitter long before Musk got involved with the platform.

It is therefore quite concerning to see them get locked out with next to no communication or warning, but that seems to be how decisions are taken now that Twitter is under new divisive management.

[Image – Photo by Sunny Haccan on Unsplash]