Explained: Threat of Threads? How Meta's version of Twitter is not new at all

The dawn of Instagram-linked Threads is being seen as threatening the social media heft created, moderated and expanded by the blue bird of Twitter that for years, has tweeted its way into 'global town square' of news, events, moments and opinions consisting of hundreds of millions worldwide.

Mark Zuckerberg-owned Meta Platforms Inc. launched Threads app on smartphone application stores on July 5. Threads is available to download for both Android and iOS users, and already, millions across the globe have tried it out on their smartphones.

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Threads has been described as a platform "where communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what'll be trending tomorrow."

Threads App launch: Initial reception

Threads was the top global trend on Twitter on July 6. On Threads — well — there appears to be no way to configure real-time global trends either on iOS or Android versions of the application. Many loyal Twitter users accused Mark Zuckerberg of copying Twitter’s micro-blogging features while others wondered if their migration to the Threads was a casual check-in or a permanent social media refuge.

Threads App: What makes it Twitter like?

At its core, Threads — like Twitter — is a microblogging social media platform. One section of the thread can have as many as 500 characters against Twitter's 280 (for unverified users). Apart from sharing links and photos, one can share videos of up to 5 minutes in length (against Twitter's 2:20 minutes for unverified users).

You can like, repost or quote threads or send them to your Threads followers — most of whom could be your Instagram followers if you choose to sign in through Instagram. While a thread can be made on Twitter as well, on Threads — as the name suggests — opining or sending out information, memes or anything Insta-worthy/tweet-worthy in the form of threads remains the central pitch of the platform towards its potential users.

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Like Twitter, a user on the Threads app has the option to keep their Threads private or public.

Meanwhile, Twitter owner Elon Musk even seconded a tweet that posted an image that described copy-paste attributes of a keyboard to suggest that 'the new Meta app' has been entirely copied and pasted.

To put it simply, Threads is Instagram morphed as Twitter with micro-blogging attributes.

Threads app: Advantages for Meta

Instagram has more than 2 billion monthly active users. Since users can log in to Threads using their Instagram credentials and follow the same accounts they follow on Instagram, it makes an easy addition to the existing social media habits for Instagram's couple of billion monthly active users.

This means that Meta just needs one-fourth of its Instagram users to join Threads to rival Twitter's user base.

Responding to a question on whether Threads can become bigger than Twitter, Zuckerberg said, "It will take some time, but I think there should be a public conversations app with 1 billion+ people on it. Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn't nailed it. Hopefully, we will."

Analysts have predicted a kickoff buzz among the advertisers to cash in on the initial momentum of growing Threads users.

"Investors can't help but be a little excited about the prospect that Meta really has a 'Twitter-Killer' poised to launch on the app store," Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at investment platform firm AJ Bell, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Threads App: Disadvantages for Meta

Mark Zuckerberg’s Threads pitch of pushing it as a platform that has “the best parts of Instagram” towards “a new experience” makes it an uneasy appeal for Twitter’s loyal user base.

The missing line in the ruling of Meta's Threads page is that a person conventionally does not follow the same set of people on Twitter as they doon Instagram. So while Meta's strategy of giving its user an option to follow its Instagram followers on Threads while signing up for it can quickly expand its user base, keeping those many users consistently active would be a challenge for Threads if it is to outfox Twitter in the microblogging game.

Minus the minority of brands, influencers and celebrities — for a vast majority of users — the social media space on Twitter represents a culture of consumption of news and information related to precise trends and world events in real-time.

To keep track of that, users follow journalists, news platforms, celebrities, leaders, icons and brands to get a sense of what's happening in the world against what is happening in the lives of people they know in day-to-day life. While Instagram is a more visual platform, Twitter remains a nearly homogenous news-oriented platform.

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