The tech titan Elon Musk may have spearheaded a successful rebranding of Twitter’s name and logo to ‘X’, including a redirection of the vanity domain x.com to the social media platform. Yet, the company has encountered a roadblock in the form of Apple’s App Store regulations, which dictate minimum character requirements for app names.
Twitter App Retains Original Name in App Store
Earlier this week, both Apple’s App Store and Google Play Store rolled out updated versions of the Twitter app for iOS and Android users respectively. Interestingly, the updated app features the new ‘X’ logo and, in some instances, even carries the new name.
Notably, BleepingComputer reported that Google Play’s page for the Android version of the app now carries the name ‘X’, rather than Twitter. Despite this name change on the app store, the app still appears as ‘Twitter’ on installed Android apps, and the internal application package (APK) ID remains as ‘com.twitter.android’.
In contrast, Apple’s App Store could not accept Twitter’s new name ‘X’, due to a rule stating that all iOS app names must be a minimum of two characters in length. The new logo was successfully updated for the iOS version, but the name remained unchanged.
Erik Berlin, a San Francisco-based commentator, humorously noted the ironic situation, saying: “Twitter was able to change the logo of their iOS app but not the name, since Apple requires app names to be at least 2 characters.”
While Apple permits app names to be up to 30 characters long, they must be a minimum of two characters. Failure to meet this requirement results in the name being rejected.
There have been reports from Apple users who have noticed the ‘X’ logo on their iPhone or iPad devices after the latest update, but the name restriction continues to be in effect on the App Store.
In response to Berlin’s commentary, software developer Yusuf Alp proposed a potential workaround: “What about X and a space, either before or after?” Berlin responded with a jest: “He already has a company called SpaceX.”
Rebranding Triggers Technical and Legal Issues
The abrupt and inconsistent rebranding of Twitter appears to be causing issues beyond the naming regulation. Microsoft Edge users reported security alerts triggered by the app’s icon change to ‘X’, as initially reported by BleepingComputer.
In certain regions, like Indonesia, internet content filters have also begun blocking access to the ‘x.com’ website, falsely identifying it as adult content due to the recent changes. These emerging issues underline the challenges involved in rebranding a well-established digital platform.
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