<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">Facebook owner Meta is launching its new app to rival Twitter and says it will go live on Thursday.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The app, which is called Threads and is available for pre-order on the Apple App Store, will be linked to Instagram.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Screengrabs show a dashboard that looks similar to Twitter. Meta describes Threads as a "text based conversation app".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The move is the latest in a rivalry between Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter owner Elon Musk.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Last month, the pair agreed to a physical fight, though it is unclear how serious the two men were about actually holding a bout.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Thank goodness they're so sanely run", Mr Musk responded to a tweet about Threads, in an apparent fresh swipe at Mr Zuckerberg.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meanwhile, Twitter has said that the popular user dashboard, TweetDeck will go behind a paywall in 30 days time.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The move is the latest push by Mr Musk as he tries to get users to sign up to Twitter's subscription service, Twitter Blue.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On Saturday, the multi-billionaire restricted the number of tweets users could see, citing extreme "data scraping".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It appears from Meta's Threads app that it will be a free service - and there will be no restrictions on how many posts a user can see.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Threads is where communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what'll be trending tomorrow" the description on the App Store says.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pictures show screengrabs from the app, that look almost identical to Twitter.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It being a Meta app, Threads will also hoover up data on your phone, including location data, purchases and browsing history.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Several apps that bear a striking resemblance to Twitter have sprung up in recent years - such as Donald Trump's Truth Social and Mastodon.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Another similar app, Bluesky claimed to have seen "record" traffic after Mr Musk's move to restrict usage at the weekend.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">However, Threads could be the biggest threat faced by Twitter to date.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mark Zuckerberg has a history of borrowing other company's ideas - and making them work.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meta's Reels is widely seen as a TikTok copy, while Stories looks similar to Snapchat.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meta has the resources to compete with Twitter. Threads will be part of the Instagram platform, so it will also be connected to hundreds of millions of accounts. It's not starting from zero, as other would-be rivals have had to do.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Although Mr Musk has been praised in some quarters for his commitment to free speech, he has also alienated some users.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mr Zuckerberg will hope he can pull enough disenchanted users away from Twitter to create a genuine alternative. BBC</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>