This just came down 10 days ago and slipped by my notice.  The basic update here is the reason you cannot create a white list application on Twitter is because they are not accepting any new applications.  Instead they are going to limit all apps to 350 API calls an hour.  Thats still quite a bit, and most new apps will still be able to work except for those doing social graph analysis.

So without further ado, the notice from Twitter:

Beginning today, Twitter will no longer grant whitelisting requests. We will continue to allow whitelisting privileges for previously approved applications; however any unanswered requests recently submitted to Twitter will not be granted whitelist access.

Twitter whitelisting was originally created as a way to allow developers to request large amounts of data through the REST API. It provided developers with an increase from 150 to 20,000 requests per hour, at a time when the API had few bulk request options and the Streaming API was not yet available.

Since then, we’ve added new, more efficient tools for developers, including lookups, ID lists, authentication and the Streaming API. Instead of whitelisting, developers can use these tools to create applications and integrate with the Twitter platform.

As always, we are committed to fostering an ecosystem that delivers value to Twitter users. Access to Twitter APIs scales as an application grows its userbase.  With authentication, an application can make 350 GET requests on a user’s behalf every hour. This means that for every user of your service, you can request their timelines, followers, friends, lists and saved searches up to 350 times per hour. Actions such as Tweeting, Favoriting, Retweeting and Following do not count towards this 350 limit. Using authentication on every request is recommended, so that you are not affected by other developers who share an IP address with you.

We also want to acknowledge that there are going to be some things that developers want to do that just aren’t supported by the platform. Rather than granting additional privileges to accommodate those requests, we encourage developers to focus on what’s possible within the rich variety of integration options already provided. Developers interested in elevated access to the Twitter stream for the purpose of research or analytics can contact our partner Gnip for more information.

As always, we are here to answer questions, and help you build
applications and services that offer value to users.

Ryan

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Ryan Sarver
@rsarver