\n<\/p>\n
A week after Instagram Threads announced<\/a> it had begun testing a search feature in Australia and New Zealand, the feature is today expanding to \u201cmost\u201d English and Spanish-speaking countries,, according to a post on Threads<\/a> by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The\u00a0expansion will impact countries where people post in English and Spanish, including Argentina, India, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the United States.<\/p>\n Though Threads \u2014 Meta\u2019s attempt at rivaling Twitter, now called X \u2014 had offered a rudimentary search feature when it launched, it would only surface Threads users, not their content. That changed with the launch<\/a> of full-text search last week, allowing users to seek out keywords and topics being discussed on the platform, not just other people.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are actively listening to the community\u2019s feedback and working on more features to improve the search experience,\u201d the company said in a statement at the time of the initial tests.<\/p>\n Image Credits:<\/strong> Instagram<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The rapid expansion of Threads search to more markets is part of Instagram\u2019s broader efforts to increase engagement on its app. Threads had experienced a blowout debut, becoming the fastest app to reach 100 million users<\/a> to date, thanks to how it tied in the new user onboarding experience to its larger parent app, Instagram, making it easier for users to immediately have both followers and a following.<\/p>\n However, in the weeks since Threads\u2019 July arrival, user activity declined.<\/p>\n Mobile intelligence firm Sensor Tower reported in August<\/a> that Threads\u2019 daily active users had dropped 82% since launch, and there were now just 8 million users accessing the app daily. To address this drop, Threads has quickly rolled out more features users have requested \u2014 like search, as well as a fully functional web app<\/a>. But the latter also had little impact in terms of bringing more usage<\/a> to the platform, data from digital intelligence firm Similarweb indicated. It found that the traffic bump from the web app launch was only 3% on a global basis.<\/p>\n Other new features Threads added shortly after its launch have included a chronological feed<\/a>, a place to see your likes, a reposts tab<\/a>, and other minor tweaks. But users still need more to make the switch from Twitter\/X, it seems \u2014 for example, lists, bookmarks, and, importantly, trends.<\/p>\n Without the combination of both search and trends \u2014 features that made Twitter a global conversation hub \u2014 Threads is less compelling. X\u2019s timeline is not just a feed of updates, it\u2019s a way to see which topics are bubbling up across the platform and what news is breaking. Today Threads is pleasant enough to scroll through \u2014 especially with its panoramic photo feature<\/a>\u2014 but it doesn\u2019t have the feel of a real-time news network.<\/p>\n Still, Threads may get an extra bump with the expansion of search as it\u2019s timed alongside X owner Elon Musk\u2019s latest erratic behavior which has him threatening to sue the Anti-Defamation League (ADL),<\/a> an organization that works to combat antisemitism, extremism, and bigotry. Musk believes it\u2019s the ADL to blame for X\u2019s declining ad revenues and not, say, X\u2019s now less stringent moderation policies in favor of Musk\u2019s preferred brand of \u201cfree speech.\u201d The Musk-led changes have led to an increase in antisemitic content and hate speech on the platform, according to the ADL<\/a> and others<\/a>.<\/p>\n As for Threads, Zuckerberg suggested the rollout of search will continue as he noted that after the English and Spanish-speaking markets, there would be \u201cmore to come.\u201d<\/p>\n Threads isn\u2019t the only Twitter competitor working on search right now. Mastodon also announced<\/a> more advanced search features last week, which allow users to filter posts on its top instance, mastodon.social using a number of search operators.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n