Meta clones Twitter: Threads is here
6/7/2023
Translation: machine translated
500-character texts, photos and videos: The new Instagram offshoot "Threads" works on the same principle as Twitter. Meta's platform has now been launched in over 100 countries, not including Switzerland and the EU.
The text-based social media platform Twitter is facing new competition from Meta. The tech giant is launching an app called "Threads", which is linked to Instagram. It has been available for Android and iOS since today - but initially not in the EU and not in Switzerland. The presumed reason: The app is probably not yet compliant with EU data protection laws.
Source: Meta
Threads supports text posts, images and videos up to 500 characters long. It uses the same account as Instagram. The app looks similar to Twitter, including the "Like", "Comment" and "Repost" options. The feed is a mixture of articles from followed profiles and algorithmically recommended articles. Unlike Twitter, there is currently no option to view the two types of content separately. However, according to Meta, such a function is in the works.
Source: Meta
Twitter chaos as a cause
Instagram boss Adam Mosseri makes no secret of the similarities between Threads and Twitter in an interview with "The Verge": "Twitter has done pioneering work. But given everything that's happened, we saw an opportunity to create something open that's good for the Instagram community."
Source: Meta
Mosseri is alluding to the chaotic state of Twitter since Elon Musk took over the platform last autumn. The latest annoyance is a limit on how many tweets users can see. It has led to much frustration and deleted accounts. There should be no such erratic changes for threads. In an internal meeting, Meta's Chief Product Officer Chris Cox called the new platform a "sensibly managed" alternative to Twitter.
This is not the first time that Meta has taken up the principle of competing platforms and copied it almost one-to-one. Instagram Stories was already a clone of Snapchat, Reels a copy of TikTok.
(Still) no connection to decentralised protocol
Threads are not connected to ActivityPub at the start. ActivityPub is a decentralised protocol for social networks that is used by Mastodon, among others. This means that different platforms are compatible with each other. For example, a post on Mastodon would also be visible on Threads and vice versa.
Adam Mosseri is fuelling hopes that Threads will soon be connected to the protocol. "We believe the decentralised principle will play an important role in the future of online platforms," he says. "Threads is Meta's first app designed to be compatible with an open protocol for social networks."
Ten million registrations in seven hours
The launch of Threads also appears to be a success: According to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, ten million users have already signed up in the first seven hours. That's a lot - but it will probably be a while before Threads catches up with Twitter. Elon Musk's platform has almost 400 million users worldwide.
Cover image: Shutterstock
Samuel Buchmann
Senior Editor
Samuel.Buchmann@digitecgalaxus.chMy fingerprint often changes so drastically that my MacBook doesn't recognise it anymore. The reason? If I'm not clinging to a monitor or camera, I'm probably clinging to a rockface by the tips of my fingers.