Threads.
Of course you know about it. It’s the hottest thing in social media since … Mastodon?
But I don't think Meta’s Twitter killer is going to work as a social media platform because I’ve seen this song and dance before, and it didn’t work then, either. So let’s explore today the case against Threads.
What’s the problem?
For a new social media platform to succeed — or for any business to succeed— it has to solve a customer problem. Threads is the same as Twitter, with far less meaningful functionality. So I am truly struggling to see the business case here. What problem is solved by Threads?
Most people say it is the place for Twitter haters. But so was Mastadon and Bluesky. Are you going to Bluesky every day instead of Twitter? That’s what I thought.
Let’s not forget that Google Plus was the place for Facebook haters. I was the only blogger in the universe who predicted G+ would not work — on the very day it was launched.
Same reason — we already had a social network. It was called Facebook. G+ did not solve a unique problem. It was just for haters. I wrote at the time that it is far easier to move to a new house in another city than to move to a new social network and take your friends, your communities, your games, etc. along with you.
People only have the bandwidth for one social media function. We have one YouTube. We have one LinkedIn. We already have one Twitter. That’s all we need.
Google Plus was the fastest-adopted technology in history at the time. Once the novelty wore off, it crashed hard. The reason for the crash? Well, that’s a story for another day. Well … OK, if you really want the story, it’s here.
Twitter drama
Many early Thread advocates are relieved to be away from the Musk-induced Twitter drama. Threads is the block party for Twitter haters. But being “not Twitter” is not a sustainable source of business differentiation.
Twitter’s heaviest users, like journalists and activists, are probably oblivious to the drama, or perhaps immune to it. It’s not a reason for max exodus. This is where they have their Lists and their Twitter Chats and debates. It’s their…
