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Many Threads users are now reporting that they can opt out of having their postings shared on Instagram and Facebook. To prevent Threads posts from appearing on Meta’s other platforms, press the two lines in the top right of the Threads app > Privacy > Suggesting posts on other apps – two switches allow users to disable Instagram and Facebook suggestions. Meta prefers to bring out Threads features gradually, reported The Verge.
According to The Verge, Instagram and Facebook each got a “For you on Threads” carousel in the last few months. Responding to user grumpiness, Threads said in October it was “listening to feedback” shortly before testing the opt-out switch that’s rolling out now.
The feature was clearly designed to drive engagement on Threads, which appeared to be foundering following an excellent initial launch. However, things are looking up now. Threads now has around 100 million monthly users, according to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on an earnings call last month.
That’s still short of the “over half a billion monthly users” that Elon Musk just claimed X has, but it’s a strong indication for Threads, which is only a little more than four months old.
There may be other, bigger changes coming to the app soon. Alessandro Paluzzi, a software engineer who’s found a lot of features on Threads before they’re out (including the new cross-platform post-suggesting switches), posted a screenshot that suggests Meta could be preparing to open the platform up to EU users.
Meta has held off on launching Threads in Europe because of how the region’s Digital Markets Act governs the handling of cross-platform data, reported The Verge. Also, Zuckerberg recently announced that Instagram is testing a new feature that will let users disable read receipts in DMs (Direct Messages), The Verge reported.While Zuckerberg did not share any details on when the feature will be available to everyone, Instagram head Adam Mosseri shared a screenshot of the upcoming read receipts toggle on his broadcast channel.
A similar feature is already available on the Meta-owned messaging platform WhatsApp, which lets users disable read receipts for reading messages privately.Also, Zuckerberg and Mosseri did not mention if that option will be coming to Messenger, which also forces users to use read receipts with no way to disable them.Meanwhile, Instagram is planning to come up with a Threads application programming interface (API). This will help developers to create different apps and experiences around Threads, TechCrunch reported.”We’re working on it. My concern is that it’ll mean a lot more publisher content and not much more creator content, but it still seems like something we need to get done,” Mosseri said in an Instagram post.
