The deal gives Twitter users the option to link their accounts to Ping, iTunes' troubled social network, and port activity between the two services. It's a huge win for both Apple and Twitter, but the real question asked by Austin Carr at fastcompany.com is : why didn't Facebook take the deal?
Clearly, Facebook was Apple's first choice. Steve Jobs desperately wanted the networks' 500 million users (Twitter has 175 million) to help populate Ping through Facebook Connect.
But after a reported 18 months of negotiations between Apple and Facebook, the deal crumbled. Why?
Because of Facebook's demands for "onerous terms," according to Steve Jobs.
Critics might argue Facebook made the right move. After all, giving Apple access to its half-billion users is a lot to stomach. On the other hand, Mark Zuckerberg and Co. may have lost out on something more valuable: user behavior. Apple, through iTunes, has created a community of very willing customers: Users let Apple store their credit card information, and are eager to buy apps and songs and movies and books. No social network has reached that point, and Apple could be the key.
Read more here.
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