Twitter takes on Facebook Groups with invite-only Communities

[CyberTech]

Content source

https://www.theverge.com/2021/9/8/22661649/twitter-releases-communities-facebook-groups-reddit-competitor

Twitter is launching Communities, its rival to Facebook Groups and Reddit, for tweeting with others who share specific interests.

Starting Wednesday, Twitter users can be invited to an initial batch of Communities that include #AstroTwitter, #DogTwitter, #SkincareTwitter, and #SoleFood (a group for sneaker enthusiasts). Once people join a Community, they can tweet directly to other members rather than to just their followers. Only members of a Community can like or reply to tweets sent by other members.

Similar to how groups on Facebook and Reddit’s subreddits work, each Twitter Community will have its own moderators who are able to set rules and invite or remove people. Twitter invited a handful of users to create the first Communities and will let anyone apply to create their own on its website. “Communities are just invite-only for now, but we’re working on ways for people to discover and join Communities they want to be a part of,” the company said in a statement. That makes Communities harder to join than subreddits or public groups on Facebook. Twitter is also approving moderators to start.

Communities is a somewhat obvious move for Twitter, given that its users have long formed niche groups around specific interests, like media and crypto. Twitter is now formalizing that dynamic into a product that it plans to eventually put front and center on the main navigation bar of its mobile app.