Twitter Removing 'Bird' Theme, Rapid Decline in Users Thread

Elon Musk Unveils Twitter's New 'X' Logo
Threads Hits 100 Million Users in Record Time
User Numbers Plummet in 2 Weeks, 'Twitter Killer' Claim Fades
Mixed User Reactions Despite Promised Twitter Changes

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The excitement surrounding Threads, which secured 100 million sign-ups in the shortest period ever in just five days, has cooled off sharply. Although it was hailed as a "Twitter killer," its user base plummeted by 70% within two weeks of launch. It appears to have set records for both the fastest user growth and the fastest user decline. However, the atmosphere around Twitter remains cold. Twitter is aiming for a turnaround by removing its iconic "blue bird" and adopting "X" as its new logo. Yet, user reactions remain lukewarm.

On the 5th of this month, Meta launched a text-based social networking service (SNS) targeting Twitter. The initial response was explosive. It surpassed 100 million sign-ups within five days of launch. According to mobile data analytics platform Sensor Tower, the daily active users nearly reached 50 million. However, two weeks later, the daily active users dropped to 13 million, a 70% decrease.

The decline in Threads users is attributed to the absence of several features. The search function only allows finding accounts. Users cannot search for posts or browse by topic. There is no direct messaging (DM). Users cannot even view posts only from people they follow. Features considered basic by users are missing.

As Threads rapidly lost momentum, Twitter announced a transformation. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, revealed on the 23rd (local time) via Twitter that the platform’s logo would be changed. The Twitter logo has been a blue bird, and the word "twitter" itself means the chirping of birds. Going forward, the blue bird will be replaced by "X."

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, posted the new Twitter logo 'X' on Twitter.

Musk aims to turn Twitter into a super app like China’s WeChat, where everything is possible. It seems he wants to unify the group’s image under the brand "X," similar to his space exploration company SpaceX. Musk also announced that Twitter’s web address will be changed to X.com.

Linda Yaccarino, Twitter CEO, stated on Twitter, "X will be a future place of infinite interaction, including audio, video, messaging, payments, and finance," adding, "With the help of AI, X will connect us as we imagine."

Despite these plans, Twitter’s future looks bleak. During the period when Threads rapidly gained users, several Twitter metrics declined. However, in the past two weeks, when Threads’ user base sharply decreased, Twitter’s download numbers and other indicators showed little change or even declined.

There is also an assessment that Threads and Twitter are engaged in a no-winner battle. With short videos under one minute, known as "short-form," becoming dominant, the main user base of SNS?teenagers?has largely migrated to short-form platforms like TikTok. This suggests that text-based SNS itself is in decline.

Additionally, Twitter is facing financial difficulties as advertising revenue has been halved. Musk also laid off more than half of Twitter’s employees to cut costs after acquiring the company.

The laid-off employees have filed a lawsuit demanding severance pay of at least $500 million (approximately 644.5 billion KRW).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.