Launch of Meta’s Threads Shakes Up Social Media Landscape Amid Twitter Turmoil. Here’s How to Sign Up
Meta Platforms, the parent company behind Facebook and Instagram, has just entered another social networking arena with the launch of its microblogging platform ‘Threads’ on July 6.
The text-based Twitter competitor’s launch came in response to users’ ever-growing dissatisfaction over Elon Musk’s multi-billion-dollar takeover of Twitter, a move aimed at challenging Twitter’s dominance by providing users with an alternative online space for their conversations.”
“This is a space Twitter has been in and led for a while, but our perspective here is that there is an opportunity and people are looking for more choices,” said Instagram’s vice president of product, Conor Hayes.
Off to an impressive start, Instagram’s Threads has leveraged its parent platform’s infrastructure and login system to gain a bigger and faster user base. In the hours following its launch, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed enthusiasm for Threads’ competition with Twitter, revealing that the platform had gained 2 million sign-ups in the first two hours.
“Let’s do this, welcome to Threads,” Mark Zuckerberg posted on the new app.
In response to the launch of Threads, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk took to Twitter to deliver a comparison between the micro-blogging platforms, suggesting that if it were up to him, he would prefer the direct criticism on Twitter rather than the superficial happiness on Threads.
Meta strategically leveraged Instagram as the foundation for Threads, drawing on the success of its Reels and Stories features. The company’s primary focus is currently on delivering value to users and creators, with no plans for including advertisements on Threads in the future, as stated by Hayes.
The microblogging platform sets itself apart from Twitter by offering users more space for their posts, allowing for unlimited visibility, increased text length of up to 500 characters, the ability to include links, and the option to share photos and videos of up to five minutes in length.
In terms of the user feed, Threads will feature posts from users’ follow lists as well as algorithmically recommended content. This approach aims to create a dedicated space for real-time updates and public conversations.
“It’ll take some time, but I think there should be a public conversations app with 1 billion+ people on it,” Zuckerberg posted on Wednesday. “Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn’t nailed it. Hopefully we will.”
The launch of Threads comes at a turbulent time for Elon Musk’s Twitter, following its acquisition. The platform has been facing technical issues, employee layoffs, losses of users and advertisers, and criticism regarding content moderation.
Meta’s goal is to establish connections with other platforms using the ActivityPub social network protocol, including Mastodon and WordPress. In terms of user protection, Threads incorporates Instagram’s safety measures and user controls, with private profiles for users under the age of 16 set as the default.
Users have greater control over their mentions and replies, and there are options to filter out certain word replies.
Threads is available on the App Store, Google Play Store, and the web in the United States. However, the launch in European Union (EU) countries has been delayed due to regulatory movements.
Start Your New Microblogging Journey on Threads
- On Instagram, search “Threads” in the query where you will see small ticket emoji on the right of the search box.
2. Click on the ticket emoji and it will redirect you to your Threads invitation with your username, Threads launch date, QR code, and a numeric code. To launch the app on your device, click the “Get Threads” at the bottom of the screen to go to the App Store.
- Once the app is download, you will need to create/access your profile by tapping on ‘Login with Instagram’ to join through you IG account.
- Next, you can customize your Threads profile by filling the needed information for the profile display and privacy where you can choose either public or private profile.
5. Choose the accounts you would like to follow – all Threads accounts are linked to your Instagram’s followings.
And with these short steps, you are ready to embark on your new micro-blogging journey. Blog responsibly.
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