The inevitable showdown between Twitter and Twitter apps

This article discusses the potential business model of Twitter and how it may impact complementary products such as third-party Twitter applications. The author suggests that at some point, significant money will enter the Twitter ecosystem, and history has shown that where there is high user engagement, monetization follows. If Twitter’s primary revenue source becomes search advertising, there will be an incentive for them to create their own client app or promote open-source versions of existing ones. This could lead to increased competition between Twitter and third-party apps, as the platform may favor its own client over others. The author also notes that some popular third-party Twitter apps might get acquired by Twitter, but those not so lucky will face growing competition from Twitter itself, rather than just competing against substitute products they perceive themselves as competing against today.