Threads is Instagram’s microblogging platform which is unabhashedly inspired by Twitter, so much so, that it has been dramatically monickered as the “Twitter Killer.” As the pioneer in the microblogging space, Twitter has been dogged by controversies, Meta hopes to cash in on this opportunity to provide an alternative that is “sanely moderated.”

Described as a conversations app by Instagram, users can create text-based posts with up to 500 characters, as well as share photos and videos up to five minutes long. The app looks relatively similar to Twitter, featuring a minimal interface with the options to like, comment, repost, and share threads.

Since Threads is closely tied to Instagram, users can log in with their Instagram username and easily follow the same people they follow on the other platform.

How can I download and install it on my phone? How many devices can I access it from?

The application is available on both Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store. Users can log into the platform from both their desktop browsers and mobile devices. In a nifty marketing move, Instagram also created a customisable ticket in the days leading up to the launch of the platform, that includes a QR code which gets redirected to Threads’ official website, or to the app store, for users to download and seamlessly sign up to the platform. Users can get this ticket by simply typing “threads” on the Instagram search bar.

How has it performed on the first day of its launch?

Threads has performed exceptionally well on the first day of its launch, hitting over 10 million users in the first seven hours of its launch. To put this in context, social audio application, Clubhouse, which was purported to be Twitter’s biggest rival in recent years, has 10 million users, and it has been around for almost three years. Decentralised social networking company, Mastodon, another Twitter rival that gained popularity in recent months also has 10 million users as of now.

Also read: Zuckerberg posts first tweet in 11 years in threads jibe at Musk

But Threads’ success has caught no one by surprise. As an Instagram app, Threads has access to a massive corpus of users. Over 2.35 billion active users to be exact. Instagram users can directly port their user name et al. onto the platform. But like most Meta applications there is a catch.

Once these Instagram users are on Threads, they cannot delete their “Threads” profile without deleting their IG profile as well. Meta gives users the option of deactivating their Threads profile though, if the social media humdrum becomes too much to bear. But after sign-up, their data will be present on the Threads server as well.

However, given that Threads shares major functionalities with Twitter, minus the public relations issues that Twitter has been put through since Elon Musk’s takeover of the platform, users are unlikely to be deterred by Meta’s privacy practices.

How is it different from Twitter? Will it give stiff competition to Twitter?

Threads in many ways is a cleaner and smoother version of Twitter. Meta, which has never refrained from copying the popular functionalities of its competitors and delivering them well, has truly provided a platform that appears to be Twitter’s clone. From likes, retweets, following – all these features of Threads are nearly identical to its longstanding microblog predecessor. As Twitter gets more clunkier to use under Musk’s leadership, people describe using Threads as a “breath of fresh air.”

Many popular features that gave Twitter its signature community experience are absent from Threads. This includes the hashtag feature, trending lists, and Twitter spaces, a popular copy from Clubhouse

Why has EU not allowed Threads?

As of now Threads App has not launched in the European Union, as the company works out how data sharing between Threads and the Instagram App will be regulated. Meta is waiting for more guidance around the Digital Markets Act, new EU competition rules that govern how large online platforms use their market power.

The EU’s DMA rules could potentially create stricter laws around data sharing by tech companies to prevent them from cartelising the market and giving preference to their own products.

Meta is very clearly using data sharing to rapidly gain scale on the Threads platform and this is likely to boost advertising revenue as well

Are there any data privacy concerns in the Threads?

Information provided about the app’s privacy via mandatory disclosures required on iOS shows the app may collect highly sensitive information about users in order to profile their digital activity — including health and financial data, precise location, browsing history, contacts, search history and other sensitive information.

However, Twitter is not too far behind either, collecting information around browsing history, purchases and contact as well. The only difference between Threads and Twitter as far as data collection goes, is primarily related to finance, but then, Twitter does not have any payments features on its platform.

However Meta does not have a good public track record, when it comes to protecting user privacy.

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