Threads, Meta’s long-awaited Twitter rival, will be officially launched on Thursday (6 June) – but experts remain sceptical on whether it will succeed.
Threads is described as a “text-based conversation app” and looks extremely similar to Twitter’s layout.
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The upcoming app, now available for pre-order on both the App Store and Google Play Store, claims it will be a place where “communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what’ll be trending tomorrow.”
Meta’s release date announcement for Threads comes at a time of unrest for rival Elon Musk’s Twitter, following a number of recent controversial changes implemented on the platform last week.
Musk announced on Saturday (1 June) that Twitter users will have a temporary limit to the amount of tweets they can read per day. The changes led to backlash from users who felt the limits were too small – some users were also locked out of the platform.
In addition, Twitter has announced that its sister platform TweetDeck, a Twitter viewing tool used by professionals, will soon become a paid feature.
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By GlobalDataThe announced changes saw users aim criticism at Musk and the platform, with reports that rival social media application BlueSky received “record high traffic”.
The Jack Dorsey-backed application, very similar to Twitter, said it experienced “some degraded performance” due to the amount of people attempting to login.
However, despite the tumultuous time for rival Twitter, experts are remaining sceptical about the potential for success of Meta’s upcoming Threads platform.
Mike Rhodes, CEO and founder of ConsultMyApp, argues that other social platforms like Mastadon and Truth Social have tried to “fill the power vacuum” where Twitter has failed.
“It’s because people aren’t looking for another Twitter just because they disagree with the owner or his views – they’re bored of the concept and it no longer excites people enough to make them go and switch to a ‘newer’ version,” Rhodes told Verdict.
Matt Woods, founder and CEO of AFK, believes that Mark Zuckerberg is attempting to “launch a product to compete with Twitter that no one asked for and many others have already attempted”.
However, Woods argued that if Threads stands a chance against Twitter it will need to “funnel users from Meta’s other applications to the site – in the same way WhatsApp and Facebook show Instagram stories.”
“By leveraging the user base of their existing platforms, Meta could potentially create a demand for Threads, giving it a fighting chance in the crowded social media landscape,” Woods told Verdict.
