Instagram has come to the end of the road for the standalone messaging app Threads. Launched in 2019, Threads replaced Direct, another messaging software of the social media platform. While Direct only allows users to communicate with each other; Threads, on the other hand, was a more social sharing-oriented medium.
Instagram initially only allowed Threads users to communicate with people on their Close Friends list. The social media company, which expanded the application by publishing a comprehensive update in October 2020, eliminated this limit, allowing you to message anyone, whether they are close friends or not.
Instagram Threads will be officially shut down in December 2021
Rumors that Instagram will close the Threads application have been circulating on social media for about a week. The claim was first made by mobile application developer Alessandro Paluzzi. Sharing on his Twitter account on November 10, Paluzzi conveyed the warning message that appeared in the Threads application to his followers:
From December 2021, the Threads app will no longer be available. You can go to Instagram to see all your posts and do things like add captions to your videos.
Instagram officials have confirmed that Threads will indeed be shutting down. Providing information to TechCrunch on the subject, the social media platform shared the information that it will stop supporting the standalone messaging application at the end of December 2021. Starting November 23, everyone using Threads will be warned. The company will redirect users to the main Instagram.
According to current data, Threads ranks 214th in the Photo & Video category on the US App Store. In addition, in terms of usability and overall satisfaction, Threads seems to have scored a total of 3.1 out of 2,500 user reviews. This shows that Instagram has not been very successful in adopting the application to social media users.
According to estimates by research firm Sensor Tower, the Threads app has approximately 13.4 million downloads across the App Store and Google Play Store. Considering the popularity of Instagram, which has more than 1 billion monthly active users, this number is quite low.
As it turns out, there will be no Threads within the framework of Meta’s plans to integrate WhatsApp, Instagram, Novi, Facebook platforms. But have you been using this standalone messaging app? What do you think about its closure? We are waiting for your ideas.