Key Point
- Meta plans to launch a rival app on Twitter on Thursday.
- This comes after Twitter has experienced user backlash over tweet restrictions.
- Instagram has a history of introducing new features based on the success of other social media companies.
A new alternative to Twitter is emerging, and it’s owned by Mark Zuckerberg.
Meta plans to launch a microblogging app called Threads on Thursday.
The company has not issued an official release announcement for the app, nor has it responded to various media requests for comment, but Apple’s App Store listing provides some details.
Here’s what we know so far:
What are threads and how do they work?
The app is linked to Instagram instead of Facebook, allowing users to retain followers on the photo-sharing platform and keep the same username.
According to app store screenshots, the interface resembles Twitter, allowing users to like, re-share, and limit who can reply to posts.
Meta describes it as a “text-based conversation app” that allows users to “discuss everything from today’s hot topics to tomorrow’s trends.”
However, the app’s listing also states that it may “collect” data such as your health and fitness, financial information, purchases, location, contacts, search and browsing history.
Why is it important?
This development is a direct challenge to Twitter and represents a credible threat. since Elon Musk bought the company for US$44 billion ($66 billion) in 2022.
Last week, the Tesla billionaire announced a series of new restrictions on the app that capped the number of tweets users could see in a day, sparking outcry from many on the platform.
He also announced that the TweetDeck dashboard will be behind a paywall within a month.
Musk responded Tuesday to a tweet about the launch with apparent anger, saying, “It’s great that they’re operating with such sanity.”
After acquiring the company late last year, It has also reinstated a number of banned accounts, including those of former President Donald Trump and conservative satirical news site Babylon Bee.
Hundreds of advertisers have suspended spending on Twitter over perceptions of growing harmful content on the platform, and an internal document seen by Reuters shows the platform’s most active users leaving. It is shown that
Will a thread succeed where other threads have not?
Alternative microblogging sites like Mastodon and Blue Sky have seen user growth since Musk’s acquisition, but neither has been able to compete with Twitter.
But Instagram already has hundreds of millions of registered users and has a history of introducing new features based on the success of other social media companies.
In response to the growing popularity of Snapchat, in 2016 Instagram added a feature called “Stories” (user posts disappear after a certain period of time).
Most recently, the company’s short-form video feature, Reels, is trying to challenge the rise of TikTok.
Meta did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the launch of a similar service on the Google Play store. Reuters reached out to Twitter for comment.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/what-we-know-about-threads/tz0afv3x1 Thread: What we know about Twitter’s new rival