A text-based, stand-alone social network application is currently being developed by Meta, the company that owns Facebook and Instagram.
It might compete with both Twitter and Mastodon, which is a decentralized alternative to Twitter.
According to a statement sent to the BBC by a spokeswoman, “We are studying the possibility of creating an independent decentralized social network for exchanging text updates.”
“We think there’s a need for a dedicated location where creators and public figures can give timely updates about their interests,” said the company.
An application similar to Twitter would make it possible for Meta to capitalize on the current state of instability at the firm run by Elon Musk, which has been focusing heavily on lowering costs.
Since Mr. Musk took control of Twitter toward the end of 2017, the social media network has been having trouble maintaining its existing advertiser base.
Following Twitter’s decision to restore suspended accounts and introduce a paid account verification, which led to scammers impersonating organizations, businesses have cut back on their expenditure.
According to MoneyControl, the new software has been given the codename P92, and it would reportedly enable users to sign in by utilizing their already-established credentials for Instagram.
The infrastructure upon which the Meta app will be built will be analogous to that which underpins Mastodon, a service that is comparable to Twitter and which debuted in 2016.
The new application would operate in a decentralized manner, which means that it could not be bought or sold, nor could it be run at the whim of a single body.
The initiatives that Meta has been working on come at a time when its most popular platform, Facebook, is having trouble capturing the attention of people in its target demographic.
It has also made significant investments in the metaverse, which is a virtual world where users may connect with one another and work, but this endeavor has not yet been successful.
Another video-sharing app, Instagram, is likewise facing tough competition as content creators and big influencers move away from Instagram and toward TikTok.
When exactly Meta would launch their new app was not immediately clear.
