The new App is getting its momentum now. In some regions, Threads became available in Google Play on July 1 without any announcement or warning. That is highly unlikely that Meta and Zuckerberg would do that, right? That is why everybody assumed it was just a glitch.
So, officially a Twitter alternative was released on July 5 and reached 30 million active users in less than a day. And within less than a week the platform reached 100 million active users despite not being yet available all over the world. It makes Threads the fastest-growing app in the history of social media. For example, it took ChatGPT two months to reach 100 million users, TikTok reached that milestone in 9 months.
Users can access the application by logging in using their Instagram profile. The new app is similar to Twitter and Instagram at the same time with the basic Twitter functionality and a simple layout. The post can have 500 characters, including links, photos, and short videos. In fact, the similarity between the two apps is the reason why X Corp took legal action against Meta to enforce intellectual property rights. Basically, Twitter is suing Meta for hiring former Twitter employees and copying the application.
Threads comprise the main feed and you can like, re-post, or reply to each of them. The hashtags are not available now as well as voice notes, and photo/video tagging. Those features are on the way as well as an improved search, since now you can only search for users. It works on a decentralized protocol to let people follow and interact with people on other fediverse platforms. However, it is not fully functional yet. You can easily switch between dark and light modes. But! You cannot send DM.
In case you’re tired of a new platform and want to remove your presence, you’ll have to delete it with your IG account as it is powered by Instagram. But you can deactivate your Threads account and simply hide it without deleting your IG account.
The algorithm does not lightly rand threads and it is looking to draw attention to recommendations rather than accounts you follow. Besides that, you can still have a separate following feed ignoring all those recommendations. Branded content tools are also being developed which is good news for marketers.
Unlike Twitter, Threads is working on the ‘edit’ button to give users a chance to change their minds and edit the thread.
The number of accounts and active users are two big differences. Gradually, the number of active users and the screen time decreased. Probably, it happened because of limited features, though it is just the beginning.
As of now Threads is not available everywhere but Europe. And most likely it will take months to get there due to Digital Markets Act in the EU because the app will have to meet all the requirements outlined in the Act. However, some European users used VPN to get access to the app but they were eventually cut off. Anyway, they have no choice for now but use Twitter.
So, is it a Twitter killer or another app getting hype like Clubhouse? We’ll see! Don’t miss our latest updates – subscribe to our newsletter email and get fresh articles to your inbox.
