Threads, the Twitter rival from Meta’s Instagram that appeared out of nowhere to wind up with 100 million subscribers after its first five days, is moving faster than expected to add a feature found on Twitter. Originally, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri said that Direct Messaging for Threads would not be coming soon. Direct Messaging, or DMs, are messages sent privately from one subscriber to another subscriber on the same platform.
Now it appears that Threads might be offering DMs sooner than expected. Business Insider (via BGR) has obtained a leaked internal memo from Instagram saying that DMs would be “coming soon” to Threads along with some other features. While the report was blocked by a paywall, social media analyst Matt Navarra posted on Twitter (ironically) that the memo does mention new capabilities that are heading to Threads.
This is actually good news for Threads since adding DMs mean that anyone on the platform who wants to speak with another subscriber privately will be able to do so without leaving Threads and heading to another social media app. What made Threads decide to move up the timeline for DMs? There is speculation that important Threads creators got the ear of Instagram executives and stressed the importance of launching it for the platform ahead of other features.
Social media analyst Navarra says DMs are coming soon to Threads along with other features
Instagram CEO Mosseri also said that improved search, trends, and topics are also coming soon for Threads. In addition, Threads has promised support for multiple accounts, a feed in chronological order that would show only people you know, support for hashtags, and the ability to edit posts. Subscribers also want the option of deleting their accounts without having to delete their Instagram account. And eventually, once Threads becomes more than just a flash-in-the-pan, you’ll see Instagram look to monetize the platform by selling ads.
Threads is off to a good start putting pressure on Elon Musk and his team to attract more advertisers and turn Twitter cash flow positive. As for Threads, we don’t know when DMs and all of the other aforementioned features will come to the site but for those who are backing it, these additions can’t come soon enough. And it seems that Instagram’s Mosseri is smart enough to understand that he can turn the heat up on Twitter by launching these features earlier than expected.
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