Technology
Thursday, December 14th, 2023 3:22 pm EDT
Key Points
- Interoperability Testing for Meta’s Threads: Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is set to test a system allowing posts from its microblogging platform, Threads, to appear on other social media services. This move is considered a significant step for Meta and the “fediverse,” a collection of social networks enabling data flow similar to email.
- ActivityPub Integration with Threads: Threads will use ActivityPub, a guideline code often associated with the fediverse. ActivityPub is employed by smaller, community-run social media services like Mastodon. Threads joining the fediverse through ActivityPub is seen as a notable boost to the project, with potential integration over weeks and months. Meta’s Threads platform has the potential to become a major player in the fediverse, which currently has around 11 million users.
- Challenges and Growth Prospects: While the fediverse has inherent challenges due to its decentralized nature, the integration of Threads with ActivityPub is expected to contribute to the network effect. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg views this as offering people more choice in interaction and expanding content reach. However, concerns exist about a tech giant like Meta dominating the technology and influencing network operations in the fediverse. The growth of Threads, reaching 100 million users in its initial days, has somewhat cooled, but Zuckerberg announced plans to open Threads to more European countries.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is set to test a system allowing posts from its microblogging platform, Threads, to appear on other social media services. This move is significant for both Meta and the “fediverse,” a collection of social networks allowing data to flow freely among them. The fediverse, previously comprised mostly of smaller, community-run platforms like Mastodon, utilizes the ActivityPub guideline code. Threads will also adopt ActivityPub, adding a major player to the fediverse. While the fediverse has about 11 million users, Threads reached 100 million users in its first five days in July, though its growth has since slowed.
The move to integrate Threads with ActivityPub is considered a test. If fully integrated, Threads users could follow and see posts from other ActivityPub platforms without joining Threads, expanding the network effect. However, the decentralized nature of the fediverse poses challenges, including complex moderation issues and the potential for disinformation. Meta’s entrance into the fediverse has sparked excitement but also raised concerns about a tech giant dominating the technology and influencing its operation. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg described the move as offering people more choice in how they interact and helping content reach a broader audience.
For the full original article on CNBC, please click here: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/14/zuckerberg-says-threads-will-dip-its-toe-in-the-fediverse-as-it-opens-to-europe.html
