Apple and Facebook have gotten into a very public feud over the past few months as Apple takes its pro-privacy stance. The two companies have been under tension for a long time, but recently Facebook is taking photos of an upcoming iOS and iPadOS feature that requires apps and data companies like Facebook to ask for users’ consent before being tracked on other sites and websites.
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While the war of words between the tech titans has largely remained professional, Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook have also shared a barrage of attacks on each other. During a 2018 interview in the midst of Facebook’s infamous Cambridge Analytica scandal, Cook was asked how he would lead Apple if it faced a similar crisis. Cook responded by putting the hypothetical situation beyond the question, saying that Apple would not be in the situation Facebook was in, thanks to its different stance on privacy and user data. Zuckerberg threw back, calling Cook’s comments on TV “extremely slippery” and “completely out of line with the truth.”
Zuckerberg, outraged by Cook’s comments and public influence on Facebook’s reputation, reportedly told internal assistants and team members that Facebook must “hurt Apple,” according to sources who spoke of anonymity with The Wall Street JournalLast month, during the company’s earnings, Zuckerberg called Apple a growing threat to Facebook and accused tech giant Cupertino of using its platforms to interfere with how Facebook runs its own apps.
The day after the public comments, Cook responded indirectly in a speech at the Computers, Privacy and Data Protection conference, condemning Facebook and suggesting that its business model of maximum engagement leads to division and violence. During the same speech, Cook condemned Facebook’s possible role in the January 6 Capitol riot, blaming the social media company’s algorithms for spreading conspiracy theories.
In December, Facebook posted full-page ads that attacked Apple’s emerging ATT or App Tracking Transparency requirement, which will force apps to ask for user consent before being tracked across apps and the web. Facebook is attacking Apple on the premise that ATT will harm small businesses that rely on personalized ads derived from effective tracking. In response, Cook immediately weighed in on Twitter, stating that Apple just wants that give users a choice about whether they want to be tracked or not.
Despite the personal jabs and attacks, it is given in a statement The Wall Street JournalFacebook spokeswoman Dani Lever refuted the notion that the tension between the two is personal, suggesting instead that it was “about the future of the free Internet.” Facebook argues that the choice between tracking users for personalized ads and protecting their privacy is a “false trade off,” and claims it can provide both. The spokeswoman echoed Facebook’s previous comments, saying that Apple’s privacy features are not intended to protect users’ privacy, but to increase profits, and that Facebook will join others for Apple’s “self-preferential, anti-competitive behavior. “to emphasize.
Apple declined to comment on the report.
Facebook is reportedly planning to take its disapproval of Apple to court as it is reportedly preparing to file an antitrust suit against the Cupertino-based technology company over its “unfair” approach to privacy with ATT and iMessage. As part of its lawsuit, Facebook is considering partnering with other companies such as Epic Games, which is already engaged in a massive legal battle with Apple to advance its antitrust case. However, Facebook may scrap its plans to take any form of legal action against Apple.
Utah Senator Mike Lee, who leads the Republican effort on the Senate antitrust subcommittee, told The Wall Street Journal that the feud between Apple and Facebook is at the “intersection of privacy and antitrust,” and that he does not want to “impose regulations that ultimately protect incumbents and anchor monopolies.”
Apple has pledged to launch ATT with iOS and iPadOS 14.5 in “early spring,” and Facebook has seemingly admitted defeat in its failed effort to prevent the new requirement from taking effect. Apps have the freedom to customize the prompt that users receive asking for their permission to be tracked in other apps and on the web, and screenshots of Facebook’s prompt for its iOS app begging users to sign up for tracking to provide a better ad experience. “
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