7mo ago

Elon Musk Says He Owns Everyone's Twitter Account in Bizarre Alex Jones Court Filing

Summary

Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) has filed a court motion claiming ownership of all X accounts, arguing they cannot be transferred, in an effort to block The Onion’s purchase of InfoWars, Alex Jones’s conspiracy outlet.

The sale was part of a $1.4 billion judgment against Jones for defaming Sandy Hook families.

X’s filing asserts that users only hold a non-transferable license to their accounts, despite Musk’s prior actions threatening to reassign handles.

Critics view Musk’s move as aiding far-right figures like Jones and aligning with his MAGA agenda.

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8mo ago

Elon Musk Says He Owns Everyone's Twitter Account in Bizarre Alex Jones Court Filing

gizmodo.com /elon-musk-says-he-owns-everyones-twitter-account-in-bizarre-alex-jones-court-filing-2000530503

52 comments

I just need someone to explain to me how this doesn't mean he's liable for anything posted on every account. If he has ownership of the account then the liability rest with him. So the meteoric rise of child pornography on Twitter would seem to indicate to me at least that Elon Musk is liable for child pornography. Not to mention hate speech and credible threats.
- He didn't think that far ahead.
  
  He didn't think
- I believe the argument being used is roughly analogous to lending something to someone.
  If you borrow a lawnmower, it doesn't get auctioned off when you go bankrupt. You get to use it however you like and if you commit a crime with it you're responsible. It's still ultimately owned by the person who leant it to you.
  
  Doesn't it expose them to at least a little bit of liability? Especially if they loaned it out to a child or something.
- Rich people aren’t liable for their actions.
  
  They don't get arrested or charged, they get letters from the DoJ asking them to stop please.
- The same provisions that protect internet providers when subscribers use their service to break the law, probably. As long as they pretend to be a communications provider and self-regulate, they're shielded from liability.
  In this case, the account/handle could be argued to be equivalent to an IP address, which is something owned by the provider and not the user. If Felon Musk tried to claim copyright of user-submitted content as well as their accounts, that would be what opens up a large can of liability worms (by turning them into a publisher).
  
  The problem with citing those Provisions is those companies have never claimed direct ownership of said accounts. This is an entirely new legal argument.
Ok then. Close the account.
In 2022, Musk was hesitant to allow Jones back on the social media platform after he had been banned years earlier. Musk specifically said at the time that he wouldn’t allow Jones back on Twitter because his first child died and suggested that Jones had caused too much pain to grieving parents after the Sandy Hook massacre.
“My firstborn child died in my arms. I felt his last heartbeat. I have no mercy for anyone who would use the deaths of children for gain, politics or fame,” Musk tweeted on Nov. 20, 2022, roughly a month after buying the platform.
I'm surprised people still have any respect for this hypocrite.
- And then: Elon Musk’s ex-wife refutes his claim that firstborn child died in his arms
- After the election, I'm so not surprised at all.
  In fact, I haven't been even a little surprised these people have fans since 2016.
So he’s going to take his ball and go home..?
- More like, he’s taking his ball, and you go home.
Pepperidge Farm remembers when he took over the @x account from a long time user and no 'no transferable license was ever muttered when it benefited him not to do so.
you take away all his money and you're just left with pure, raw asshole.
- he's more like one of donvict's hemorrhoids.
Weird, because their help articles suggest giving account handles over in the case of trademark infringement. https://help.x.com/en/search-results?limit=10&offset=0&q=Trademark&searchPath=%2Fcontent%2Fhelp-twitter%2Fen&sort=relevance
- You don't expect Elon to read things, do you? He has important one-word tweets to post!
  
  Regimental...
- Those were written by sane people before Muskrat took over and fired everyone that had any ounce of integrity.
Sure, but that doesn't mean he owns any trademarks that might appear within those account names, like, say, Infowars or some such. He can give the account to whoever he wants. But he can't protect them from being sued for trademark infringement if they use it.
- Only if they sue because they are pretending to be infowars. I can register “google” as a username all I want and they can’t actually stop me as long as I don’t pretend to be them or use their logo.
  
  What if they put a blue tick on it?
OK, but why should this block the sale? The twitter handle is only a small part of the Infowars assets.
Mean the one I deleted a while ago?
- naw. the one you thought you deleted a while ago.
  
  You mean the one Elon uses now?
So if you threaten someone on Twitter it's really Elon threatening them? Interesting.
- No, just Elon threatening himself.
But they have been transferred. They've taken accounts away from people.
Man.
He's like if Dr. Evil and every bond villain were combined into one, then poorly written in a Sci-fi channel special as the wealthiest man in the world.
He doesn't actually do anything but be rich and say stupid shit, and for some reason people keep going along with it
Technically he's right. It's like the access card to a shitty gym, the card is their property, provided to you as long as you fulfill your part of the agreement.
Except that this time, the gym is owned by a megalomaniac madman. I'd let him keep the card and let him waddle in the filth of his own making all by himself.
- No, the X terms of service specifically state that you retiain ownership and rights to anything you post. X just takes free license to your posts so that it can show it to the world.
  There are Intellectual Property Licenses in these Terms: You retain ownership and rights to any of your Content you post or share, and you provide us with a broad, royalty-free license to make your Content available to the rest of the world and to let others do the same. Conversely, we provide you a license to use the software we provide as part of the Services, such as the X mobile application, solely for the purpose of enabling you to use and enjoy the benefit of the Services.
  
  You retain rights to your content, but not to the account itself.
  Which isn't a bad thing. Platforms should be able to terminate accounts that break the law, for example.
  
  That's not the same as saying you own the account.
My tinfoil take: There’s something in the Twitter DM between him and Alex Jones that NEEDS to stay private.
- And you think the twitter CEO can't delete that?
Just a reminder... melon head is a junkie. Everything he says is a drugged up delusion. Nothing to see here, just walk on by.
- You could say he's under the influence, but as much as I dislike the guy and want him to fail, I cannot discount that he knows what he's doing. He's a billionaire, that bought a media company to further his business and personal interests. Just like Bezos. He feels he swung the US election and is fuelled by hubris and self-importance. A right winger using his media company to help out right wingers. Was it his choice or a favour for Donny, who knows. I do suspect Tesla and SpaceX are going to get a nice smooth run in terms of contracts, funding and legal disputes
  
  Dude is wanna be CEO of two companies, has no involvement in five other companies, has twelve kids with his employees he doesn't take care of, and now wants to help run the US government when he couldn't run a McDonald's. He is spread thinner than a jar of mayonnaise on a thousand loaves.
  He has a team of handlers whose job is to literally keep him away from anything important. Not only does he not know what the fuck he is doing he is failing his kids, companies, and humanity.
  He bought a company with other peoples money and let them turn it into a propaganda machine to extort and sell influence around the world through deception and lies. He is Alex Jones Jr. with more money and more reach.
  A self admitted drug addict that thinks he knows more about manufacturing than any human alive. Once you peel back the lies and deception you have a Nepo baby manchild sexual assaulting conman.
  But sure he has a lot of money. I guess that is all it takes for some people to drop trough, spread them cheeks, and get ready for daddy Muskrat.
Yeah. This won't hasten the exodus to Bluesky or anything
- It won't. People on on twitter cause they say the engagement isn't the same everywhere else. But I think its just bots.
  
  I've started noticing embedded bluesky posts in news stories instead of embedded tweets. I think it might.
does this mean whoever bought dril's account has to give it back
Elon’s looking like he’s got a Michael Jackson style chin implant.
Feels like a great time for a competitor to explicitly state that you in fact, do own your account on their site. Nuance to that as tech bros is always gonna be tech bros (and blue sky is also tech bros, just with temporary infective to say "nah man, it's cool baby..." for the time being while they build market share). But basically stating that you have full ownership and responsibility to manage your account, and that management transfers along with any kind of power of attorney shift or through any other related court actions
Does this come as a surprise to anyone?

52 comments