What is known about the new social network Threads

On July 7, it became known that Twitter would file a lawsuit against Meta Corporation (recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation) due to launch Threads social network, which gained 30 million users worldwide in less than a day. The history of creation and features of the new social network – in the help of “Kommersant”.

Threads development began in January 2023. Three months earlier, American billionaire Elon Musk acquired Twitter and announced changes to the content moderation of the social network. This has prompted many users to look for alternative microblogging services. In November 2022, Meta employees decided to capitalize on this dynamic and announced a new product.

Information about the application appeared in the media in March 2023. June edition The Verge published an excerpt from a Meta internal board meeting discussing Project 92, described by Meta Platforms top manager Chris Cox as “an analogue of Twitter.”

The Threads social network became available to users on July 5. Citizens in 100 countries, with the exception of EU states, have access to it, as Meta is awaiting clarification from local regulators on privacy issues. Within a few hours, Threads had 2 million users. By July 6, the app had surpassed 30 million downloads, surpassing the record set by ChatGPT. On the same day, Twitter lawyers announced their intention to sue Meta Platforms, alleging that the company used trade secrets to develop the application.

One of the main features of Threads is that its accounts are tightly integrated with those of Instagram (owned by the extremist and banned Meta). When registering in a new microblogging service, a user receives the same name as in another Meta social network associated with it. At the same time, it is impossible to delete an account in Threads without deleting an account on Instagram.

Threads developers say that the social network will soon integrate with third-party services. It is expected that this will provide an opportunity to share content and attract subscribers from other platforms. Meta collects Threads profile data: about the interaction of the account owner with other subscribers, about health, location, fitness, purchases and more.