Meta’s social media platform, Threads, launched with a bang on July 5, 2023 in over 100 countries, is now facing a serious crisis with its daily usage seeing a significant decline as against its promising introduction.
According to data from Similarweb, which provides digital intelligence insights, engagement with the app has plummeted by a staggering 79 per cent.
The platform saw a peak of 2.3 million active users in early July, but by August 7th, this number had dwindled to just 576,000.
Corporate retreat: Major brands scale back posts
Not only have individual users been abandoning Threads, but several prominent US companies, including fast-food giant Wendy’s, clothing retailer Anthropologie, and makeup brand Rare Beauty, have also decreased their posting activity on the platform.
Adweek has reported this corporate retreat, reflecting the diminishing allure of Threads, as reported by the Guardian.
Impressive start followed by fading appeal
Threads generated substantial excitement upon its launch on July 5th, amassing a remarkable 5 million user registrations within its initial hours.
Impressively, within less than a week, over 100 million people had signed up, setting a new record for rapid app downloads.
However, this initial surge in interest has since subsided. On its busiest day, Threads had less than half the user count of Twitter, the incumbent social media giant, which boasts an average of over 100 million daily active users.
Threads’ intentions and Musk’s impact on Twitter
Threads was strategically positioned to take advantage of the tumultuous state of Twitter following its acquisition by Elon Musk. Musk’s takeover of Twitter in October 2022 resulted in significant layoffs within the company and the implementation of controversial policy changes.
These actions contributed to a decline in advertising revenue and a surge in user complaints about glitches and an uptick in hateful speech on the platform.
Also watch | Elon Musk calls Mark Zuckerberg ‘chicken’ amid cage fight remarks
Zuckerberg and Musk’s public feud and abandoned cage fight idea
Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, two prominent tech figures, engaged in a very public feud. At one point, their rivalry escalated to the point where they jokingly considered a cage fight during the summer.
However, Zuckerberg announced that this concept had been dropped, citing Musk’s lack of seriousness and commitment to the idea.
Despite the banter, Zuckerberg made it clear that if Musk were to genuinely pursue such an event, he would be open to discussing it.
Meta’s response and ongoing developments
As of now, Meta, the parent company of Threads, has not provided an official response or comment regarding the platform’s declining usage and corporate pullback.
The fate of Threads remains uncertain as it navigates a competitive landscape and grapples with the aftermath of its promising start and subsequent downturn.
