Follow" accounts: Threads from Meta moves a little closer to the Fediverse
Meta is deepening the connection of threads to the Fediverse a little more: accounts outside the EU can now follow profiles on Mastodon & Co.
(Image: Primakov/Shutterstock.com)
Meta's short message service Threads has taken the next small step on the way to the announced connection to Mastodon and the Fediverse. Outside of the European Union, users can now follow accounts created outside of Threads to a limited extent – This mainly concerns Mastodon. However, the connection only works in a rudimentary way for the time being, so posts sent from there do not automatically appear in the timeline on threads.
This was announced by Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg, who pointed out that so far it has only been possible to follow accounts that have interacted with threads, i.e. have left a like or a reply on a profile connected to the Fediverse, or have followed you. But even if this hurdle has been overcome, following does not work in the same way as on threads. To see the posts of such a profile, you have to visit it directly. However, Threads boss Adam Mosseri has added that you can be notified of new posts from such a profile.
The end of walled gardens?
This does not yet work in Europe, confirmed Threads developer Peter Cottle. Just a few weeks ago, he assured us that the introduction of the Fediverse connection in Europe is still at the top of the priority list. Overall, Meta remains committed to opening Threads to competitors in a way that none of the major social networks have done so far. Bluesky and Mastodon can already be connected with each other, and now both are growing even closer together with Threads.
Videos by heise
The Fediverse's promise of interconnected networks, where accounts retain control over their connections, has recently met with considerable interest, particularly in the USA. More and more services have introduced a connection or are working on it. The magazine app Flipboard, for example, has started to federate its own content, i.e. link it to Fediverse. The first accounts can already be followed, for example by heise online. The blogging and newsletter platform Ghost is also working on such a link, and WordPress blogs have been connected for some time. Soon, for example, complete articles from Ghost could be shared via Mastodon and then received directly in Bluesky or Threads.
(mho)
