Meta simply launched Threads, a brand new text-based social networking service that goes head-to-head with Twitter. Meta’s Fb and Instagram have all the time competed with Twitter, in fact, however Threads does so instantly. The 2 apps are practically equivalent.

Twitter has struggled since being acquired by Elon Musk in 2022, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg clearly sees a possibility to supplant it.

Meta glides in as Twitter struggles

Fb debuted in 2004 and through the years constructed a person base of about 3 billion. Twitter got here alongside in 2006 and hasn’t executed as properly, although it had about 370 million customers in 2022.

However that quantity is reportedly dropping. The evaluation agency Similarweb mentioned in March that Twitter visitors was down 18.7% year-over-year.

Elon Musk paid way more for Twitter than the corporate was price, and consequently laid off 80% of the workers. Controversial feedback by the billionaire spooked advertisers — income from advertisements is down 60%.

Like a shark after wounded prey, Meta smelled blood within the water and responded with its new software, which it calls Threads, an Instagram app. It’s accessible now within the App Retailer for iPhone and iPad, in addition to Google Play for Android.

Threads is a Twitter clone

“Say extra with Threads — Instagram’s text-based dialog app,” says Meta’s description for its new software program. “Threads is the place communities come collectively to debate every part from the matters you care about at the moment to what’ll be trending tomorrow.”

Customers log in with the credentials from their current Instagram account. And so they have the choice to observe the identical folks they do on Instagram. The distinction within the two is that Threads is about speaking with phrases relatively than footage, although pictures could be connected to Threads posts. The identical is true for hyperlinks and movies as much as 5 minutes in size.

If all that sounds acquainted, it’s as a result of Threads’ person interface is almost equivalent to Twitter’s. Customers publish brief textual content messages (500 characters max) to their followers about something that’s on their thoughts.

“No matter it’s you’re fascinated about, you may observe and join instantly together with your favourite creators and others who love the identical issues — or construct a loyal following of your individual to share your concepts, opinions and creativity with the world,” mentioned Meta about its app.

Musk says he’s made Twitter a haven without cost speech, which has resulted in a rise in hate speech on the platform.  Meta inbuilt controls to permit customers to guard themselves from such assaults. “We constructed Threads with instruments to allow constructive, productive conversations. You may management who can point out you or reply to you inside Threads,’ the corporate mentioned within the official announcement of the software program/service.

Now that Threads is on the market, it’s as much as customers to determine if they like it to Twitter. Which may very well be the start of the tip for Twitter.

However whichever selection customers make, certainly there will probably be loads of posts on each social-networking companies in regards to the promised cage battle between Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk if the 2 males actually do take their rivalry past apps and into literal kicks and punches.