What's so appealing about Meta's newly launched Threads application?

The Threads app, recently launched by Meta, Facebook's parent company, promises to be a fierce competitor to Twitter.

Meta officially launches Threads - an application to compete with Twitter. (Source: PYMNTS)

Threads had a very smooth start. According to the company's report, just one day after its launch (July 5th), the app had 30 million registrations, including many brands, celebrities, journalists, and more. By the morning of July 6th, Threads had also entered the App Store rankings and trended on Twitter.

Amid growing user frustration with Twitter's changes, Threads could pose a threat to Elon Musk's social media platform. Twitter is facing even more criticism, especially with its recent policy limiting the number of tweets viewable per day. This gives Meta an opportunity to solidify its dominant position in the social media market and develop a promising new platform.

What are threads?

Threads is an application developed by Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Threads shares many similarities with Twitter, with an interface primarily designed for text posts and allowing users to chat directly with each other.

Threads posts are limited to under 500 words, allowing users to comment on, share, and quote other users' posts. Additionally, Threads incorporates many Instagram features and allows users to share posts directly to Instagram Stories .

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated in a Threads post following its launch: “Threads’ vision is to create a friendly public space for conversation. We hope to leverage Instagram’s strengths and create a new experience for text, ideas, and more.”

Threads accounts are directly linked to Instagram accounts. Users can also set their accounts to public or private.

How to register and delete a Threads account

Users register for Threads using their existing Instagram account. The app retains the username, password, and account name. Instagram's follower list is also copied to Threads, saving users time on setup and platform interface development.

Meta expects to leverage Threads effectively to boost its advertising business. (Source: The New York Times)

Conversely, deleting a Threads account isn't a simple matter. Users can still disable their account through the settings, however, the only way to delete Threads is to delete your Instagram account, according to the app's privacy policy.

Many people have also expressed concerns about Threads' potential to collect user information, such as address details, contact lists, search history, and browsing history.

Could Threads become the "Twitter destroyer"?

Although only released a few months ago, Threads is expected to replace Twitter as the number one social platform for online communication. And this is very likely to happen.

Many Twitter users have expressed a desire for an alternative app since billionaire Elon Musk acquired Twitter last year. Frequent glitches and policy changes have led many to stop using the platform.

And Meta has taken a step ahead of Twitter: leveraging the existing Instagram user base. Meta expects to attract at least over 2 billion global Instagram users with this new app. Meanwhile, Twitter only has just over 250 million users.

Mark Zuckerberg's Threads post read: "This may take time, but I think there should be an app that communicates online with over 1 billion users. Twitter hasn't done it, but I hope we will."

Twitter's new CEO, Linda Yaccaro, responded to Mark Zuckerberg's comments in a tweet, stating that Twitter is "irreplaceable."

Threads' interface is integrated from various platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, etc. (Source: CNN)

"We are often imitated, but there will never be a second Twitter community," the post stated.

In fact, many of Twitter's competitors have also tried to attract users to register on their platforms, but only Threads has been able to draw many people to its new platform because of its convenient and user-friendly interface.

The CEO of Instagram also pointed out that the biggest challenge for a newly established social network is not attracting many subscribers, but getting them to use it long-term.

Specifically, Threads has been working to combat repetitive content, harassment, and fake news—issues that Twitter has failed to address effectively, leaving many users frustrated.

The new platform was launched after Meta laid off more than 20,000 employees since last November, including risk analysts, benefits specialists, policy and user experience professionals. This also coincides with the busy campaign season for the 2024 US presidential election, coupled with expert warnings about a wave of misinformation. Meta stated that Threads' community guidelines will be the same as those of its other applications.

The potential of Threads for Meta

For Meta, Threads could be a way to increase engagement from the massive existing user base from previous platforms.

Although it doesn't yet have ads on the platform, Threads is expected to complement Meta's core advertising business, especially after Meta faced challenges from the widespread decline in the online advertising market and Apple's privacy changes.

However, considering what Twitter has achieved, Threads is unlikely to attract as much advertising revenue as other Meta platforms.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/ung-dung-threads-vua-duoc-meta-ra-mat-co-gi-hap-dan-234067.html