Bluesky is a Twitter alternative
Koshiro K/Alamy
A tale of two social networks. While Elon Musk’s Twitter seems to be constantly plagued with controversies, bugs and problems, a new competitor founded by the site’s former CEO, Jack Dorsey, is making waves. Bluesky takes a radically different approach to delivering content, with exclusive platform invite codes selling for hundreds of dollars.
So what exactly is happening on Twitter? Should you try to secure an invite to Bluesky? Here’s our guide.
What did Elon Musk do to Twitter?
Since acquiring Twitter for $44 billion in October 2022, Musk has fundamentally rewritten how the platform works and what it means. Musk is pushing a paid subscription service called Twitter Blue to generate revenue for the business, while also promising other schemes that have yet to materialize, such as revenue sharing with content creators of his.
At the same time, the number of personnel was significantly reduced, which made the platform less reliable. Twitter now has about 1,000 full-time staff, up from about 8,000 employees when he took over. Glitch is common and content moderation is devalued, making social networks looser or more lenient, depending on your point of view.
Why did Musk do this?
Taken together, these changes aim to keep Twitter on a more equitable position financially and better represent the public square open to everyone that Musk believes Twitter is. “I hope this will be a case of the public choosing the story, rather than the media choosing the story. [the] Musk told the BBC in a controversial interview in April. “Over time, if Twitter is the best source of truth, I think it will succeed. And if we are not the best source of truth, it will fail.”
Will the plan work?
The consensus is that it is unlikely. Usage of Twitter Blue is below expectations. January figures suggest that just 0.2% of active users chose to pay, but recent data shows more than half of early subscribers have since canceled. The unusual choice took advertisers by surprise and abandoned the platform en masse. Twitter could also be subject to legal action due to the recent fuss over verification that some users who didn’t pay for Twitter Blue were being presented to the world as if they did. There is a nature. things are not going well.
what happened to the mastodon? Wasn’t it meant to replace Twitter?
Some switched to Mastodon shortly after Musk took over Twitter, but one analysis found that only 1.6% of those who said they would quit Twitter actually did. While user growth at Mastodon has largely stagnated, another of his competitors, Post, remains a relatively niche interest.
You’ve heard of Bluesky, what is it?
Bluesky is a new alternative to Twitter released on the Apple App Store in February. Although founded by Dorsey, Bluesky’s CEO is Jay Graber, a former cryptocurrency software engineer. At this time, only invited people can sign up.
So what makes Bluesky different?
Bluesky’s selling point is its authenticated transfer protocol. It is designed to decentralize control of social networks from individuals and businesses, allowing users to self-host their profiles and move between social media platforms. Eventually, the team behind Bluesky hopes users will be able to choose personalized algorithms that dictate what content they see.
As Paul Frazee, one of the developers working on Bluesky, said: “We create protocols to protect people and deliver better outcomes, and we build it all around thinking about how technology can make that possible.”
Will it succeed?
That’s a million dollar question. In a short period of time, Bluesky has amassed his 50,000 users. But can that growth continue? “The problem with succession is that a product like Twitter is as powerful as the network effects it can be,” says Bruce Daisley, a former Twitter executive who retired before Musk took over. “Nowadays, Bluesky is a quirky mix. [dedicated] Twitter user, calm and fun. But the reason people left mastodons and posts was because there was no one there. “
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