Threads arrived to become the best alternative to X, the former Twitter. A social network that has just announced surpassing 175 million monthly active users. A staggering figure demonstrating the growth of this alternative to X, which continues to gain new users every day. Though no one can deny Threads had a somewhat complicated start.
It was on July 5, 2023, when Threads entered the market as an alternative to the former Twitter, using a well-known micro-news format. The app, which is related to Instagram but operates independently, was first rolled out in the United States and other countries worldwide, with versions for both iOS and Android devices. Threads arrived in the European Union in December, delayed due to Meta encountering “complexities” in complying with privacy regulations under the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act.
Threads initially swept among users. The achievement is notable considering it wasn’t available in Europe until a few months later. However, after the initial boom, Threads started to decline in use. The reason? Shortcomings compared to X became apparent, especially with the technical limitations of the service. As is normal with any platform, the development team gradually implements new features. In Threads’ case, many functions that the old Twitter already had were missing. Despite the initial hype, as months passed, Threads began losing users. This prompted Meta to step up, and since then, they’ve been continuously releasing updates to improve the service.
SIMILAR POSTS
At its launch, Threads offered capabilities very similar to its competitor, allowing text posts up to 500 characters, and the ability to share links, photos, and videos up to five minutes long. Since its launch, users have been able to repost these posts and use the “Like” button to show approval for what they are viewing. In subsequent months, Threads has introduced features such as saving favorite posts, saving drafts, taking photos within the app, real-time search filters for recent results, and direct messaging (DMs). Meta has also implemented other features on its platform, including a desktop application for Threads on Windows computers and trending topics, which allows users to see the most popular themes in real-time, among others.
Being able to delete your Threads account without deleting Instagram, saving favorites, and more novelties arrived on this micro-news social network. Since then, it has been regaining traction. It’s true that it can’t be compared to other Meta ecosystem networks like Facebook or Instagram, but it is heading in the right direction.
The latest addition to Meta’s ecosystem of social platforms announced one day after its availability that it had reached 30 million registrations. Just a few days later, it announced it had reached 100 million users. It was then that it also commented that its goal was not to replace Twitter but to “create a public space for communities on Instagram that never embraced” this other social network. By February of this year, it reported having 130 million monthly active users, at which point it also said the microblogging network was growing steadily, a trend confirmed by the most current figures, as CEO Mark Zuckerberg has revealed.
Zuckerberg shared through his profile on the social network that Threads now has more than 175 million monthly active users. “What a year,” Zuckerberg said in this post, without providing further details on the achievements made by the app in these months.
