The CEO of StockTwits is accusing Twitter of ripping off one of his company's innovations -- clickable "cashtags" based on company ticker symbols.
Such symbols will be distinguished by a dollar sign in front of the symbol. The company announced the introduction Monday night via a tweet.
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However, Howard Lindzon, co-founder and CEO of StockTwits, pointed out in a blog post that his company has been doing the same for four years:
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I am disappointed of course that Twitter is hijacking our idea and time (will only confuse the masses), but Stocktwits moved beyond that basic functionality four years ago. In a dirty way, it’s the ultimate compliment so we will take it as such for the moment and keep rolling out functionality that makes us the best real-time communication platform for people that love stocks and markets.
Lindzon added that, "You can hijack a plane but it does not mean you know how to fly it." Twitter reps could not be reached for comment, however it should be noted that other Twitter innovations, like hashtags, were started by users, rather than the compay itself. Meanwhile, some users were debating the issue on Twitter Tuesday morning.
What do you think? Did Twitter rip off Stocktwits' idea? Do you care? Let us know in the comments.
This story originally published on Mashable here.
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