Threads first impressions: can Meta? Is it plagiarism? Twitter-like app.
Character limit, reposting, feed. Very familiar. Mark Zuckerberg claimed millions signed up within hours. Tech bosses who claim a platform has numerous users should be questioned. However, it seems popular. It’s linked to Instagram. When you join Instagram, you can “follow all” your followers. The option gives you a pre-made follower list, but your Instagram pals will certainly sign up.
Mr. Zuckerberg’s cleverness explains why Big Tech businesses dominate smaller ones. Meta isn’t building an app. Its billion-plus Instagram followers boost it greatly. Mastodon and Bluesky did not. Zero users. Mr. Zuckerberg doesn’t care if this is “fair”. He’s eager to copy again—
Reels is a TikTok clone.
Mr. Zuckerberg has also recruited Instagram celebrities like Shakira and Gordon Ramsay for Threads. App buzz will please Mark Zuckerberg. Network impact drives social media. Apps improve with usage.
Network effects can tip social media.
You feel compelled to join a platform when so many of your friends or desired contacts are there. Social media networks are difficult to create. However, it works well. Communities leaving a social media platform can also happen swiftly and be sad. Myspace, Bebo.
However, let’s discuss Threads’ issues. It only has one feed. Twitter offers a recommendations feed and a follower-only alternative. Threads mixes your followers and recommended content in its stream. That might offend.
It’s not desktop-compatible yet.
That’s sad. It’s hard to tell what’s viral because there’s no trending information. It lacks Twitter’s message function. Like Twitter, users can buy their blue ticks monthly. It’s smaller than Twitter despite having more users and a buzzy feel.
Though the app is only hours old, your posts won’t reach as many people. Threads allows 500 characters against Twitter’s 280, and 5 minute videos versus 2min 20 seconds. Twitter has direct messaging, trending news, and hashtags, while Threads doesn’t. Twitter charges for Threads, longer posts, videos, and editing. It feels like Mark Zuckerberg’s “initial version” of the app. It’s functional. This app is currently boring.
Meta’s boss will be thrilled with this so far. He’s remaking himself as the reasonable tech billionaire who wants a benign social media platform after years of bad headlines. Musk is furious. “Thank goodness they’re so sanely run,” he tweeted sarcastically on Monday. However, Mr. Zuckerberg’s concerns about disgruntled Twitter users rejecting Meta’s offer appear unjustified. If so, Mr. Musk may have an issue with an app that functions well, if not spectacularly.
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