With upcoming integration into iOS5, Twitter seeks closer ties with developers

Now that it will be integrated into Apple Inc.'s upcoming iOS5 for mobile devices, micro-blogging site Twitter wants developers to get more involved with it. Twitter executive chairman Jack Dorsey said Twitter will be more willing to listen to developers and provide them better tools and new opportunities. "With Apple’s upcoming deep integration of Twitter into iOS5, there is an opportunity for us, together, to take the ecosystem to a new level," he said in a post. He told developers they are a fundamental part of Twitter's DNA, and that Twitter's commitment is to give them the "structure, tools, resources, and support" they need to build [their] businesses. Dorsey said Twitter wants feedback in the form of what additional materials developers need to help build products, boost distribution and expand their reach. Apple's iOS5 will be used to expand the capabilities of Apple devices such as iPads, iPhones, and iPod Touches. "Very soon, anywhere there’s an iPhone or an iPad, you’ll always find Twitter. If you’re an iOS developer, you can add Twitter to your application to personalize the experience for your users, giving them easier and better ways to login, enrich their experience, share thoughts and content and help boost your distribution," Dorsey said. A separate article on tech site Mashable said Dorsey’s note was the digital equivalent of extending an olive branch to reassure developers they are a key part of Twitter. Mashable quoted some developers who said Twitter's communications to developers had been improving in past months. “As someone who shut down a Twitter client in development due to poor communication and fast moves by Twitter to take over the client experience, I welcome this move towards more advance knowledge of plans," developer Steve Streza said. But Mashable said other developers are taking the opportunity to request full access to Twitter’s firehouse. Others are not yet ready to forgive and forget. “Investing in the Twitter platform is difficult now that Twitter directly competes against their developers by building its own clients and services," said "Isaiah." — LBG, GMA News