Social media platforms have become an integral part of our lives. Among the various platforms available, Instagram has emerged as one of the leading contenders, constantly evolving to meet the needs of its users.
Instagram recently launched a new standalone app called “THREADSAPP’ on the 6th of JULY” which serves as a direct competitor to Twitter, a platform created by Meta. After months of rumors and leaks, Threads has finally arrived, offering users an alternative way to engage with social media. This exciting new platform is accessible through its desktop sites at Threads.net or by downloading the app for iOS and Android devices.
During an interview with The Verge’s Alex Heath, Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, discussed the launch of Threads. He expressed that while Twitter pioneered the space of real-time communication, Instagram saw an opportunity to create something unique and beneficial for their existing community. Mosseri stated, “Obviously, Twitter pioneered the space…but just given everything that was going on, we thought that there was an opportunity to build something that was open and good for the community that was already using Instagram.”
Threads is a new app from Meta that lets you create text-based posts with up to 500 characters, as well as share photos and videos up to five minutes long. The app has a minimal interface that resembles Twitter, with options to like, comment, repost, and share threads. You can log in with your Instagram username and follow the same people you follow on the other platform.
The main feed on Threads shows you both recommended content and posts from people you follow. Unlike Twitter, you can’t switch between streams of recommended and following-only content, but that might change in the future.
Threads also have some of Instagram’s privacy controls, such as the ability to filter out certain words in replies. You can also choose who can reply to your threads: everyone on the app, people you follow, or only the users you mentioned in your post.
According to The Verge, Threads come at a time when Twitter is imposing more restrictions on users, such as a temporary rate limit that prevents unverified users from viewing more than 600 posts per day (or 300 posts for new unverified accounts). Twitter also blocked logged-out users from viewing tweets on the platform.