Streets Ahead: Meta’s Threads and Instagram Video Quality
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discusses the continued growth of the Meta’s Threads platform and the Instagram move to adjust video quality based on popularity
Threads Rapid Rise: 275M Users and Counting
The News Meta’s Threads app, emerging as a competitor to X (formerly Twitter), has rapidly grown, now boasting 275 million monthly active users as of Meta’s Q3 earnings report. The platform has added 100 million users in the past three months alone, demonstrating an accelerated growth trajectory. Since Elon Musk’s leadership of X shifted its focus to political content, Threads has attracted users seeking less polarizing social spaces, positioning itself as a haven for inclusivity and neutral discourse.
Meta’s broader strategy to reduce political content, mirrored in its approach to Facebook, aligns with Threads’ positioning. This strategy taps into a rising demand for platforms prioritizing community engagement over contentious debates. While some experts caution that sidelining political discussions might limit Threads’ competitiveness with X, its user acquisition momentum suggests substantial appeal.
Although Threads has yet to generate revenue, Meta plans to delay monetization until the platform reaches one billion users. However, its remarkable growth could expedite these plans. Observers note that Threads already includes ad-ready features, signaling that monetization may be closer than initially anticipated.
Why This Matters Threads’ explosive growth, with 275 million monthly active users as of Q3 2024, and its addition of 100 million users in just three months, underscores its momentum as a social media contender.
Currently, Threads boasts an average session time of 7 minutes, appealing to users seeking short, engaging interactions. While it’s still ad-free, Meta plans to introduce monetization after reaching one billion users. However, Threads’ rapid adoption rate could accelerate this timeline, with analysts projecting the potential to achieve that milestone by late 2025.
For brands and marketers, Threads presents a unique opportunity to explore organic engagement strategies. As a non-political and increasingly popular platform, it’s poised to become a compelling alternative to X, offering a fresh space for real-time conversations and audience building.
Dynamic Video Resolution: Instagram’s New Strategy
The News Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, recently clarified how the platform dynamically manages video quality for content such as Stories and Reels. Instagram adjusts video resolution based on factors like engagement and network conditions. If a video attracts significant attention soon after posting, it is displayed in higher resolution. Conversely, less-engaged videos might initially appear in lower quality to conserve resources like storage and processing power. Should a previously underperforming video regain popularity, it can be re-rendered in high quality.
To improve accessibility on slower internet connections, Instagram also reduces video resolution to decrease load times. Mosseri emphasized that while creators often value high video quality, most viewers prioritize content relevance over resolution. This approach balances platform efficiency with viewer satisfaction, reserving premium performance for widely viewed content.
This strategy, while efficient, may inadvertently favor content from larger creators with consistent engagement, potentially impacting the reach of smaller creators or older posts. Mosseri acknowledged this but reiterated that compelling content remains the key driver of success, regardless of resolution. The policy reflects Instagram’s broader efforts to streamline user experience while managing platform resources effectively.
Why This Matters For marketers and content creators, Instagram’s video quality management underscores the need to capture audience attention quickly. Early engagement helps preserve high-quality video resolution, boosting visibility and maximizing overall reach and impact.
