Threads (social network)

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Threads
Threads (app).svg
Screenshot
Threads.ing.jpg
The Threads account page for Wikipedia
Type of site
Social networking platform
Available in
Area servedUnited States
and 99 other countries[1]
(excluding the European Union, China, Iran, Russia and 63 other countries)[2]
OwnerMeta Platforms[3]
Websitethreads.net
RegistrationRequired
UsersApprox. 124 million (as of August 14, 2023)[4]
LaunchedJuly 5, 2023; 6 months ago (2023-07-05)
Current statusActive
Native client(s) on

Template:Meta sidebar Threads is an online social media and social networking service operated by Meta Platforms. The app offers users the ability to post and share text, images, and videos, as well as interact with other users' posts through replies, reposts, and likes. Closely linked to Meta platform Instagram and additionally requiring users to both have an Instagram account and use Threads under the same Instagram handle, the functionality of Threads is similar to Twitter. The application is available on iOS and Android devices, while a web version offers limited functionality. It is the fastest-growing consumer software application in history, gaining over 100 million users in its first five days, surpassing the record previously set by ChatGPT.[6][7][8]

After Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter in October 2022, Meta employees explored the concept of introducing text-based functionality to Instagram. This feature, known as Instagram Notes, was rolled out in December 2022.[9] The company subsequently began developing a separate app focused on text-based posts. Development on Threads—internally known as "Project 92"—commenced in January 2023, with the platform officially launching on July 5, 2023. Threads immediately became available in 100 countries (out of 193 UN member states), but has delayed its launch in the European Union as it waits for regulatory clarity from the European Commission regarding the service's data collection policies.[2][10]

History[edit]

Predecessor[edit]

In October 2019, Threads was introduced as a separate app available for Android and iOS. This app's functionality resembled that of Snapchat, allowing users to communicate through messaging and video chats.[11] It was integrated with Instagram's "Close friends" feature, so that users could send images, photos, and texts privately to others, and was embedded with Instagram's photo editing system.[12][13] Instagram discontinued this version of Threads in December 2021,[14] mainly due to most of its features being rolled out on Instagram, as well as low usage compared to other social media applications.[15] Approximately 220,000 users globally downloaded the original Threads app, less than 0.1% of Instagram's monthly active users.[16]

Development and announcement[edit]

On April 14, 2022, business magnate Elon Musk attempted a hostile takeover of the social media platform Twitter.[17] On October 27, Musk acquired the company for US$44 billion in an agreement with the company's board.[18] As Twitter's owner and CEO, Musk implemented several changes to the platform, including monetizing the platform's application programming interface (API); his views and policy changes concerned many advertisers, some of whom left the platform.[19] Similarly, discontented users migrated to alternative platforms, including Mastodon, Hive Social, and Tumblr. In November 2022, Meta employees started discussing the possibility of creating a separate app for Instagram Notes, an upcoming text-based feature designed for Instagram.[20] That month, Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg—seeking to take advantage of the situation—discussed Twitter-like features the company could add to Instagram with the service's head, Adam Mosseri. At the end of the discussion, Mosseri agreed to building a separate app with a planned release date of January 2023.[21]

Amid several layoffs at Meta Platforms, Mosseri and product leader Connor Hayes assembled a team comprising two product managers, two designers, and dozens of engineers from Messenger, Facebook, and Instagram, growing to fifty-six people by the app's launch. The team favored agility, opting to build features, such as searching for content, later.[21] Development began that January under the codename "P92". Moneycontrol obtained information about the app in March, and The Verge published details from an internal company-wide meeting in June. The project, referred to as "Project 92", was described by chief product officer Chris Cox as the company's response to Twitter. Meta Platforms had reportedly secured commitments from some celebrities and was in talks with Oprah Winfrey and the Dalai Lama.[22]

In July, developer Alessandro Paluzzi tweeted about the release of Project 92 on the Google Play Store under the name Threads and shared several screenshots of its features; the app was taken down shortly after.[23] On July 3, Threads appeared on the Apple App Store with a release date set for July 6.[24] Additionally, a website for the app featured a countdown clock leading up to the service's launch. Mosseri intended to release the app a week later, but pushed the release date after Musk implemented a rate limit on the number of tweets users could read. The countdown expired on July 5 at 7:00 p.m. EDT after pushing the release date several hours further to account for international app stores,[25][21] and Threads officially launched in one hundred countries.[1] Meta Platforms is currently awaiting regulatory clarification from the European Commission due to concerns and uncertainties regarding the service's data collection policies.[1][2]

Launch[edit]

Within a day of its launch, Threads garnered thirty million users, surpassing the previous record set by ChatGPT and making it the fastest-growing platform in history.[7] On the same day, lawyers representing Twitter threatened legal action against Meta Platforms, alleging that the company had used trade secrets to develop the Threads app.[7]

Appearance and features[edit]

Designed as a platform for real-time conversations and sharing, Threads aims to provide users with a similar experience to Twitter. Threads prioritizes public dialogues over private communications, commonly known as microblogging, and is closely linked to Instagram, its sister social networking service.[24] Users can create posts consisting of up to 500 characters of text or 5 minutes of video content (compared to Twitter's 280 characters of text and 2 minutes 20 seconds of video content for non-paying users).[1][26] However, Threads lacks other common social media features, such as hashtags, trending stories, and direct messaging.[26]

In response to user feedback, Threads will introduce a new home feed for posts along with several updates to the social media app. These changes will include the capability to edit posts, translation into multiple languages and an improved user interface for switching between different Threads accounts.[27]

Threads has the same community guidelines as Instagram,[28] which bans content such as nudity, sexual intercourse and recreational drugs.[29]

Account integration with Instagram[edit]

Threads accounts are closely integrated with Instagram accounts. By default, Threads and Instagram accounts share the same username, profile picture, and display name, although the profile picture and display name can be customized. Users can choose which accounts they follow on Instagram will carry over to Threads, either with the other person's Threads account already created or set to automatically follow them once an account is created.[30] As of July 2023, if a user decides to terminate their Threads account, they must delete their associated Instagram account as well.[31] Adam Mosseri, the CEO of Instagram, has acknowledged this limitation and stated that they are exploring options for a user to delete only their Threads account.[32]

Users are required to have an Instagram account to use Threads. Threads is a companion app to Instagram, and it uses Instagram to authenticate the user's identity and connect with their network.[26]

ActivityPub protocol[edit]

If the service becomes compatible with the ActivityPub protocol, as planned,[33] Threads accounts would be accessible through their full address, @[email protected], by users of other fediverse platforms like Mastodon.[34] Threads users are also expected to have control over who can reply to their posts, ensuring that this feature remains exclusive to Threads and is not shared with any federating service.[35][better source needed] Instagram's Adam Mosseri has stated that Threads accounts will be portable, allowing users to leave and take their followers with them.[36][better source needed] This makes Threads the first social platform aiming to create a fully composable social graph on the scale of billions of people.

Device compatibility[edit]

Threads is available on mobile clients for Apple's iOS and Google's Android platforms.[37] Additionally, there is a web front-end that enables users to access profiles and posts, although it lacks the capability to log in and view the app's timeline.

International availability[edit]

Threads is currently unavailable in the European Union.[38] Meta is also blocking access to Threads to EU-based users, even if the user uses a VPN to bypass the blocking.[39] In Iran, the government has blocked Threads, adding it to the extensive list of censored social media platforms in the country.[40] Despite being subject to censorship by the Great Firewall in China, Threads reached the top four free social apps on the Chinese iOS App Store.[41] Russia blocked Threads one day after its launch.[42]

Advertising[edit]

Threads does not contain ads. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated that monetization would not take place until the app had "hundreds of millions" of users.[43]

Userbase[edit]

Since its launch, Threads has grown rapidly, reaching 100 million users after 5 days.[44][45] Third-party observers claim that the number of daily active users has dropped by 20% since the initial 5 days,[46] and that there has been a 50% reduction in user engagement.[47] Moreover, the average time spent on the app is said to have decreased from the July 6 peak of around twenty minutes per user to eight minutes on July 10, four minutes on July 21, and just under three minutes on August 1.[46][48][49]

Users (millions)251020307090100105*110*115*120*
Time since launch2 hours4h7h12h16h2 days4d5d6d8d13d26d
References[50][50][51][52][50][53][6][44][45][4][4][4][4]

When Threads reached about 105 million users on July 11, 2023, Meta stopped disclosing its numbers of users; subsequent numbers have been approximated through sampling of follower counts.[4] Despite the initial growth in sign-ups, the number of daily active users on the platform fell by 70% by July 17, down from its peak on July 7.[54] Recent developments indicate that Threads is facing challenges in retaining users and is considering the addition of "retention-driving hooks".[55] By mid-August, the daily number of users on Threads had fallen by over 80%. The number of daily Android users had also fallen over 75% from 49 million to 11 million.[56]

Responses[edit]

Template:Undue section

Intellectual property dispute[edit]

On the day of Threads' launch, Twitter issued a legal threat against it claiming that it infringes on Twitter's intellectual property rights. In a letter directed to Meta's CEO, Twitter's lawyer alleged that Meta recruited numerous former Twitter employees who had access to Twitter's trade secrets and confidential information.[57] Meta has denied these allegations, asserting that no former Twitter employees are involved in the Threads engineering team.[58] Twitter also asked Meta to honor its robots.txt file and not crawl or scrape its data.[59][60]

Data privacy[edit]

Further information: Data privacy, Social profiling, and Surveillance capitalism

The data collection policies of Threads have garnered criticism, with experts raising concerns over the amount of private information collected by the app, as well as previous controversies surrounding Meta's use of user data.[61]

State media[edit]

Threads does not label state media accounts which, according to The Wall Street Journal, has raised concerns of Russian and Chinese government propaganda and disinformation on the platform.[62]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Milmo, Dan (July 6, 2023). "Threads app: Instagram owner launches Twitter rival in 100 countries". The Guardian. London. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Milmo, Dan (July 5, 2023). "Meta delays EU launch of Twitter rival Threads amid uncertainty over personal data use". The Guardian. London. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Meet Rousseau Kazi, the Bangladeshi-born CEO and Co-Founder of the other 'Threads'". July 9, 2023. Archived from the original on July 11, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "Threads User Count Tracker". Quiver Quantitative.
  5. ↑ Noor, Saleha (July 6, 2023). "Instagram wants to take over a drama-laden Twitter with Threads". Wired. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Gomez, Dessi (July 8, 2023). "Meta's Threads Crosses 90 Million Signups in 4 Days". TheWrap. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Isaac, Mike (July 6, 2023). "Threads Becomes Most Rapidly Downloaded App, Raising Twitter's Ire". The New York Times. New York. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  8. ↑ Ray, Siladitya (July 10, 2023). "Threads Now Fastest-Growing App In History—With 100 Million Users In Just Five Days". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  9. ↑ Perez, Sarah (December 13, 2022). "Instagram now supports text updates with launch of Notes, adds other new sharing features". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
  10. ↑ Kelly, Samantha (July 6, 2023). "Meta officially launches Twitter rival Threads. 30 million have joined already". CNN Business. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  11. ↑ Yurieff, Kaya (October 3, 2019). "Instagram takes another page from Snapchat's playbook with new Threads app". CNN Business. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Instagram Threads App – Now Connect with your Close Friends More Conveniently". October 6, 2019. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  13. ↑ Roettgers, Janko (October 3, 2019). "Instagram Launches Photo Messaging App Threads". Variety. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  14. ↑ Espósito, Filipe (November 17, 2021). "Instagram discontinuing its Threads direct messaging app next month". 9to5Mac. Archived from the original on February 5, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  15. ↑ Perez, Sarah (November 17, 2021). "Instagram will shut down its companion app Threads by year end". TechCrunch. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  16. ↑ Leskin, Paige. "Fewer than 0.1% of Instagram users have bought into the hype of the platform's latest Snapchat competitor, Threads". Business Insider. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  17. ↑ Sidddi, Faiz; Gregg, Aaron (April 14, 2022). "Elon Musk attempts hostile takeover of Twitter, calling path 'painful'". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  18. ↑ Conger, Kate; Hirsch, Lauren (October 27, 2022). "Elon Musk Completes $44 Billion Deal to Own Twitter". The New York Times. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  19. ↑ Sidddi, Faiz; Lerman, Rachel; Merrill, Jeremy (April 15, 2023). "A year ago, Musk asked, 'Is Twitter dying?' He may have his answer". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  20. ↑ Huang, Kalley (December 7, 2022). "Twitter's Rivals Try to Capitalize on Musk-Induced Chaos". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 4, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Nix, Naomi; Oremus, Will (July 29, 2023). "Move fast and beat Musk: The inside story of how Meta built Threads". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  22. ↑ Heath, Alex (June 8, 2023). "This is what Instagram's upcoming Twitter competitor looks like". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 4, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  23. ↑ Davis, Wes (July 1, 2023). "Meta's Twitter competitor, Threads, briefly showed up on Google Play". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 2, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Isaac, Mike (July 4, 2023). "Meta's 'Twitter Killer' App Is Coming". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 4, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  25. ↑ Lawler, Richard (July 5, 2023). "The Instagram Threads launch countdown jumped forward and is now targeting 7 PM ET". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 McCallum, Shiona (July 10, 2023). "Threads app signs up 100m users in less than a week". BBC News. Archived from the original on July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  27. ↑ "Meta plans feed for Threads after users complain". BBC News. July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
  28. ↑ "Threads Terms of Use". Instagram. June 22, 2023.
  29. ↑ "Community Guidelines". Instagram. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
  30. ↑ Yang, Angela (July 6, 2023). "Instagram Threads is live, threatening Twitter's reign: What to know about the new Meta app". NBC News. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  31. ↑ "People are realising something really worrying about Threads". The Independent. July 6, 2023. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  32. ↑ Moon, Mariella (July 7, 2023). "Meta is working to stop deleted Threads accounts from nuking Instagram too". Engadget. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  33. ↑ Bell, Karissa. "Meta's Threads app is here to challenge Twitter". Engadget. Yahoo. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  34. ↑ Warren, Tom (July 5, 2023). "Instagram's Twitter competitor, Threads, briefly went live on the web". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  35. ↑ Bradshaw, Kyle (July 4, 2023). "Threads, Meta's Twitter clone, starts launch countdown, plus a few details on how it works". 9to5Google. Archived from the original on July 4, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  36. ↑ Mehta, Ivan (July 5, 2023). "Adam Mosseri says Meta's Threads app won't have ActivityPub support at launch". TechCrunch. Yahoo!. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2023. you may one day end up leaving Threads, or, hopefully not, end up de-platformed. If that ever happens, you should be able to take your audience with you to another server.
  37. ↑ Isaac, Mike (July 5, 2023). "Threads, Instagram's 'Twitter Killer,' Has Arrived". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  38. ↑ Feiner, Lauren (July 6, 2023). "Threads, Meta's Twitter competitor, is not yet available in the EU due to regulatory concerns". CNBC. Archived from the original on July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  39. ↑ Mehta, Ivan (July 14, 2023). "Meta confirms it is blocking EU-based users from accessing Threads via VPN". TechCrunch. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  40. ↑ "Iran Blocks Public Access to Threads App; Raisi's Account Created". VOA. July 7, 2023. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  41. ↑ "Meta's Threads tops China's App Store despite Great Firewall ban". South China Morning Post. July 7, 2023. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  42. ↑ "Russia Blocks Meta's Twitter Competitor App – Lawmaker". The Moscow Times. July 8, 2023.
  43. ↑ Heath, Alex (July 26, 2023). "Mark Zuckerberg thinks Threads could be Meta's next social network with 1 billion users". The Verge. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  44. ↑ 44.0 44.1 Peters, Jay (July 10, 2023). "Instagram's Threads surpasses 100 million users". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 Ray, Siladitya. "Threads Now Fastest-Growing App In History—With 100 Million Users In Just Five Days". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  46. ↑ 46.0 46.1 Field, Hayden (July 13, 2023). "Meta Threads engagement has dropped off since red-hot debut, tracking firms say". CNBC. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  47. ↑ "Threads engagement plunges while Twitter launches revenue-sharing model". Proactiveinvestors UK. July 14, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  48. ↑ Skipworth, William. "Threads' User Engagement Plummets After Explosive Start". Forbes. Retrieved July 22, 2023.
  49. ↑ Ver Meer, Dave (August 3, 2023). "Threads User Count: Latest Numbers & Records Broken". NamePepper. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  50. ↑ 50.0 50.1 50.2 Isaac, Mike (July 6, 2023). "Threads Becomes Most Rapidly Downloaded App, Raising Twitter's Ire". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  51. ↑ Ray, Siladitya. "Zuckerberg Says Threads Crossed 10 Million Signups In First Seven Hours As Musk Rails Against Instagram". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  52. ↑ Schoon, Ben (July 6, 2023). "Meta's Threads passed 20 million users within 12 hours, and it's not slowing down". 9to5Google. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  53. ↑ "Zuckerberg claims tens of millions of Threads signups within days of launch - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. July 7, 2023. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  54. ↑ Choo, Lindsey (July 21, 2023). "Threads Is Already Losing Its Allure for Users, Adding Urgency for New Features". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  55. ↑ Fung, Brian (August 3, 2023). "Threads user count falls to new lows, highlighting retention challenges | CNN Business". CNN. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  56. ↑ "Meta's Twitter rival Threads unravels". FT Visual & Data Journalism team. Financial Times. August 12, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  57. ↑ Fung, Brian (July 6, 2023). "Twitter threatens to sue Meta after rival app Threads gains traction". CNN. Archived from the original on July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  58. ↑ Olson, Emily (July 7, 2023). "Twitter threatens to sue its new rival, Threads, claiming Meta stole trade secrets". NPR. Archived from the original on July 10, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  59. ↑ O'Brien, Matt; Grantham-Philips, Wyatte (July 7, 2023). "Clone or competitor? Users and lawyers compare Twitter and Threads". Associated Press.
  60. ↑ Claburn, Thomas (July 6, 2023). "From cage fight to page fight: Twitter threatens to sue Meta after Threads app launch". The Register.
  61. ↑ Bhuiyan, Johana (July 11, 2023). "As Threads app thrives, experts warn of Meta's string of privacy violations". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  62. ↑ Purnell, Newley (July 26, 2023). "Meta's Threads Isn't Labeling Propaganda Accounts From Russia, China State Media". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved July 26, 2023.

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

Template:Microblogging Template:Online social networking Template:Meta, Inc.

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