Instagram, the popular photo-sharing platform, has made its entry into the domain of microblogging with its new app called 'Threads,' which has recently been released on the iOS App Store in the United States. As per the data from the App Store, Threads is expected to officially launch on July 6.
According to TechCrunch, this timing seems opportune for Instagram, as its rival Twitter faced some technical issues over the weekend, resulting in rate-limit errors. Meanwhile, other competitors like Spill, Bluesky, and Post experienced significant growth.
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However, Threads might have an advantage due to its direct integration with Instagram. The app seamlessly imports your existing Instagram followers and following lists, eliminating the need to rebuild your community from scratch.
While Threads is closely linked with Instagram, it functions as a stand-alone app. Although limited details are available from the App Store listing, it appears that users can like, comment, repost, and share posts. The provided screenshots demonstrate the ability to choose the audience who can reply to your posts, whether it be everyone, people you follow, or only those mentioned in the post.
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Reportedly, the release of Threads doesn't come as a surprise, as information about the app has been gradually leaking over the past few months. There were mentions of Threads being a "decentralized" platform, and leaked slides from a briefing with top creators indicated compatibility with Mastodon, a decentralized network based on ActivityPub. However, the coexistence of Threads with the centralized Instagram remains to be fully understood.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, has had mixed success with its previous side apps. However, Threads has the advantage of entering the market at a time when Twitter has been encountering ongoing issues.
