Meta’s new text-based social media platform, Threads, is gaining popularity, with over 22 million users signing up since its release on Wednesday. However, users who wish to delete their Threads account will lose their Instagram account.
Meta clarified this policy in a “Supplemental Privacy Policy,” which states that deleting the Threads profile requires deleting the associated Instagram account. This revelation has surprised many users who were considering Threads as an alternative to Twitter.
Threads has emerged as a major competitor to Twitter, which was acquired by Elon Musk for $44 billion last year. Despite other competitors attempting to challenge Twitter’s dominance, none have achieved the same user base as Threads. The app was made available to the public in 100 countries at 7:00 pm EDT on Wednesday and does not currently feature ads. Notably, Threads is closely linked to Instagram, which has over 2 billion users.
Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, announced the success of Threads on his official account, stating that 10 million sign-ups were recorded within seven hours of its launch. Several celebrities and media outlets had already activated their Threads accounts, including Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, Hugh Jackman, The Washington Post, and The Economist.
Zuckerberg expressed his enthusiasm for Threads, indicating that he envisions a public conversations app with over 1 billion users, something he believes Twitter hasn’t fully achieved yet. In a playful nod to the similarities between Threads and Twitter, Zuckerberg posted a Spiderman meme on his first tweet in over a decade.
Threads has gained significant traction with millions of sign-ups since its release. However, the policy requiring the deletion of associated Instagram accounts has surprised and disappointed some users.
