Updates to Twitter's mobile apps has seen the social network adopt features from third-party offerings, amid talk the company could be looking to squeeze them out.
The new iOS and Android apps feature push notifications that allow users to receive alerts on mentions, retweets and the like.
You can now customise the app to receive notifications whenever specific members tweet, a la Tweetbot, a third-party app widely acknowledged as the best of the bunch.
The assumption is that, as Twitter attempts to convert all of its users to its official apps and products, that this might be a way of keeping members within the walled garden.
Consistent experience
Twitter is definitely tightening the loop on its API in a bid to "deliver a consistent experience" to all users.
Just last week the micro-blogging service opted out of an agreement with LinkedIn that allowed user's tweets to be displayed on their LinkedIn profile page.
AllThingsD points out that the next stage might be the closing down of apps that simply "ape" Twitter's stream.
With the company adding many of the features that make third-party clients more popular, it'll be difficult for app developers to give users the "added value" beyond Twitter's official products.
