Estimates Show Threads User Engagement Plummeted

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Facts

  • Estimates from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower show that Meta's new social media app Threads has experienced a 70% decline in daily active users since its July 7 peak, with its users dropping from 44M to 13M and the average daily time spent on the app declining to four minutes from its peak of 19.1
  • Meanwhile, Threads’ rival Twitter is reportedly experiencing a steady daily active user rate of roughly 200M, along with 30 minutes of average daily user time.2
  • Meta, which also owns Instagram, sparked Threads signups by allowing its 2B Instagram users to join through their accounts after it launched on July 5. That day, Twitter’s web engagement decreased by 5%.1
  • Threads is still looking to improve its user experience. Adam Mosseri — the head of Meta’s Instagram unit, which produced Threads — has promised to add features, including support for multiple accounts, the ability to edit posts, and a chronological feed option similar to Instagram and Facebook.3
  • Meta, however, has yet to monetize Threads, unlike YouTube, TikTok and Twitter, which allow creators to generate revenue through brand partnerships and advertisements.4
  • Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed optimism Monday, writing, “The focus for the rest of the year is improving the basics and retention. It'll take time to stabilize, but once we nail that then we'll focus on growing the community.”4

Sources: 1Forbes, 2Wall Street Journal (a), 3Wall Street Journal (b), and 4Entrepreneur.

Narratives

  • Left narrative, as provided by Wired. While Threads has dealt with some technological issues and still has to implement core features to rival Twitter, its advertiser-friendly content will be what brings in the cash and helps Meta take on the ideologically dangerous platform owned by Elon Musk. Threads may face an uphill battle, but it will be a smooth-running alternative where users and advertisers can go for positive content.
  • Right narrative, as provided by Federalist. Meta isn't just a Big Tech poacher trying to outcompete its business competitors, it's a Big Brother platform that has admitted to censoring Americans at the behest of the federal government. This is why social media users who care about free speech should be cautious not to let the free speech platform be destroyed by technocratic elites.