Instagram will close its companion Threads app later this year – TechCrunch

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Instagram Threads standalone messaging app is shutting down. The app will no longer be supported by the end of December 2021, the company confirmed to TechCrunch after reports began circulating via social media about its imminent closure. Instagram is planning to notify its existing Threads users with an in-app notice starting November 23, which will direct them to come back to Instagram to message their friends in the future.

Threads was first introduced in 2019 as a companion app to Instagram shortly after the company shut down its other standalone messaging app, Direct. Instead of focusing solely on the inbox experience, Threads was created as a “camera first” mobile messaging device designed to be used to post status updates and stay in touch with those you’ve designated as “Close Friends” on Instagram. However, the app hasn’t gained mainstream adoption. But instead of repeating the experience, Threads received little attention until a revamp last year that allowed it to message everyone – not just “Close Friends” – as Direct had once offered.

Although the app offered a way to update your status, or even automatically update it, based on your location, it was difficult to navigate between different sections of the app until the 2020 redesign. With the update, Instagram tried to make it easier. switching between friends’ stories, the camera interface and other parts of the experience. However, it still didn’t work as a quick way to read your messages, and it didn’t gain significant traction as a result of the changes.

The app is now ranked no. 214 in the Photos & Videos category on the US App Store, an indication of its continuing inability to reach a wider audience. It also rated a mediocre 3.1 stars out of 2,500 reviews as users complain about its usability, layout, missing features, and glitches. To date, Threads has recorded approximately 13.7 million global installs from the App Store and Google Play, according to app intelligence firm Sensor Tower estimates.

The closure comes at a time when Meta (formerly Facebook) is revamping its messaging platforms. After Threads debuted, Facebook made Messenger and Instagram interoperable, meaning Instagram users could message friends on Facebook and vice versa. The updates also included a number of new features, such as ways to watch videos together, react with emojis, change chat color, and more. Ultimately, the company wants to include WhatsApp in this cross-platform messaging experience.

Of course, those changes have raised the question of where a smaller companion app like Threads leaves.

The app closing message was first identified by reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi and subsequently written by smaller blogs. But Instagram had not yet publicly confirmed the details as the message was not yet being viewed by app users.

The company told TechCrunch that its decision to shut down Threads came about because many of its best-loved features, like auto captions and status, have been implemented or are now available on Instagram. Instagram also felt it could better focus its messaging efforts by not splitting its attention between two different apps.

“We know people care about connecting with their close friends, and we’ve seen this particularly in recent years with the growth of messaging on Instagram. We are now focusing our efforts on improving the way you connect with close friends on Instagram and withdrawing the Threads app, “an Instagram spokesperson confirmed to TechCrunch.” We are bringing the unique and fun features of Threads to the world. Instagram’s main app and we continue to create ways that people can better connect with their closest friends on Instagram. We hope this makes it easier for people to have all of these features and skills in the main app, “they added.

The company says it will release new messaging features on the main Instagram app in the coming months.

On November 23, users of All Threads on iOS and Android will start seeing warnings that the app will be closed by December, and the Instagram Help Center will also show a warning explaining that threads will no longer be supported. After app support ends, existing users will be logged out and the app will be removed from the App Store and Google Play. When the app closes at the end of the year, all Threads features will be available on the main Instagram app.

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