While this might not be big news, Facebook is trying their best to take on Snap and now is doing it via Instagram, according to The Verge, which reports that Instagram has been developing “Threads”, which is a new, separate app based on the lists of “close friends” of Instagram users.
About the app
There are plenty of reasons why Facebook thinks that now is a good time to try to implement a dedicated app just for “close friends”, as Mark Zuckerberg said earlier this year that he intended to remake Facebook into a “privacy-focused” social space centered around private messaging because it turns out that people are seeking less and less ways to share on social media, so a more private version of Instagram might just be an adequate solution to this.
Facebook and Instagram both tried to copy Snapchat plenty of times over the years and their first successful attempt was the introduction of Stories inside of Instagram.
The app is meant to “promote constant, automatic sharing between users”, reports The Verge, which has released mock-ups of the app that are based on the unreleased app. A single feed can be seen where users can watch friends’ stories or brief “statuses”.
These updates can be generated automatically based on what users are doing, their whereabouts, the speed they’re traveling at (or if they are “on the move”). The updates can also be posted manually by users.
Launch date
It’s unclear when or if the new app will launch. At the moment, it is being tested by Facebook employees, according to the report, even though usually the company tests new features which never end up rolling out more widely. Users should just keep an eye out for official updates of the app and their complementary patch notes.
