What to know:
- Meta plans to introduce advertisements on Threads starting January 2025, marking an earlier monetization timeline than previously indicated.
- The platform has experienced rapid growth, reaching 275 million monthly users with over 1 million new sign-ups daily.
- The rollout will begin with a small number of advertisers, though Meta’s current priority remains focused on building consumer value.
Meta is gearing up to monetize its rapidly growing social media platform Threads sooner than expected. The company plans to introduce advertising on the platform in January 2025, despite earlier suggestions that monetization would be a longer-term goal, as per The Information (via The Verge).
The decision marks a significant shift from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s previous statements. When Threads hit 200 million users in August, Zuckerberg had indicated that monetization would be a “multi-year” effort. However, the platform’s explosive growth seems to have accelerated these plans.
Threads has emerged as the largest alternative to X (formerly Twitter), boasting 275 million monthly active users and attracting more than one million new sign-ups daily. This rapid expansion has likely influenced Meta’s decision to fast-track its advertising strategy.
Instagram head Adam Mosseri has been transparent about the platform’s future monetization plans. “We definitely plan to bring ads to Threads,” Mosseri stated in a recent Threads post. He explained the business reality behind this decision, noting that “at the end of the day we’re a business and Threads needs to make enough money to pay for the people and servers that it takes to run the service and provide it to people for free.”
Meta’s approach to advertising on Threads will be cautious and measured. The company plans to begin with a select group of advertisers in January, though the timeline for expanding this program remains unclear. A Meta spokesperson maintains that the current focus remains on building consumer value, with no immediate monetization features in place.
The platform’s success stands in stark contrast to other Twitter alternatives. For comparison, Bluesky, another similar platform, recently celebrated adding one million new users in a week, bringing its total user base to 15 million – a fraction of Threads’ user count.
