New Delhi: Meta Platforms Inc is exploring plans to launch a new social media app in its bid to displace Twitter as the world’s “digital town square”. Meta’s app will be based on a decentralized framework like Mastodon, a Twitter-like service that launched in 2016 and now has nearly 2 million monthly active users. A spokesperson for Meta told Reuters in an emailed statement, “We have been exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates. We believe there is an opportunity for a separate space where creators and the public Celebrities can share timely updates about their interests.”
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It was not immediately clear when Meta would roll out the new app. Meta, which saw a spurt in user growth following its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp in the early 2010s, recently faced intense competition from Chinese short-video app TikTok. Monthly active users for Meta’s family of apps grew 4.2% in the December 2022 quarter, compared to 8.8% a year earlier.
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“It is a strategy to dominate all spaces under social media and have offerings that cover all use-cases and demographics,” said Jehil Thakkar, Partner, Deloitte India.