In the heated battle for social media supremacy, Mark Zuckerberg’s recent venture, Instagram Threads, has experienced growing pains with spam attacks and bot infiltrations. The abrupt issues have prompted the introduction of rate limits to control traffic, prompting ridicule from Twitter CEO, Elon Musk. This situation has highlighted the intricate challenges that tech giants face as they seek to reshape the dynamics of online communication.
Rate limits: Necessary evil or design flaw?
Adam Mosseri, Instagram’s head, confirmed the implementation of rate limits via a July 17 post on the Threads app. His announcement cited a surge in spam attacks as the trigger, necessitating stricter regulations that may inadvertently impact active users. The app, launched as a rival to Twitter, encountered an explosive growth spurt, amassing over 100 million users within five days of its release.
However, Instagram Threads’ glory was short-lived. One week after its launch, data indicated a worrying decline in user engagement. According to Olivia Moore, a partner at crypto venture capital firm a16z, daily active users on Threads fell by 40%, and the average daily time per user decreased significantly. Moore opined that importing users directly from Instagram, a strategy that links user accounts to their real-life identities, stifles the kind of interaction that Twitter famously offers – anonymity and fan pages.
Zuckerberg’s attempt to dethrone Twitter has thus far presented more challenges than victories. User complaints are rising, with many expressing frustration over spending significant time blocking spamming bots, mainly those promoting gambling and cryptocurrency websites.
Twitter vs Instagram Threads: Echoes of a familiar struggle
Echoing Instagram Threads’ conundrum, Twitter also imposed rate limits earlier in July, although for a different cause – intense data scraping from external entities. Twitter had set initial post-viewing limits to 6,000 for verified users and 600 for unverified users, which were later increased after user backlash. Musk recently announced a further increase of the limit for verified users to 15,000 posts per day.
Responding to Instagram Threads’ announcement, Musk, seemingly amused, tweeted, “Lmaooo copy 🐈,” alluding to the similarity in the problems faced by both platforms. Critics suggested Twitter’s struggles wouldn’t have emerged if not for the company’s decision to lay off a large portion of its engineering staff, and the same scrutiny now shadows Instagram Threads.
Lmaooo Copy 🐈
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 17, 2023
Musk’s taunting reaction showcases the brutal competition in the social media landscape, highlighting the often complex and surprising struggles technology giants face when introducing novel platforms. As both Instagram Threads and Twitter grapple with these unforeseen hurdles, it remains to be seen how these platforms will evolve their strategies to keep bots and spam at bay while ensuring user satisfaction and engagement.
