Twitter evaluates its 2,500 word maximum "notes" feature

 

A new tool that allows users to share "notes" up to 2,500 words long is being tested by Twitter.

Posts on the social media site are often limited to 280 characters.

Twitter claimed that the change was in reaction to users using the service to post images of longer announcements and direct followers to external newsletters.

A limited group of writers from Canada, Ghana, the UK, and the US will participate in the test, which will last two months.

Readers can view a headline and access the longer message by clicking on a link under the new feature, which attempts to keep audiences within the Twitter ecosystem.

Long-form writings that may be read on and off Twitter will allow authors to incorporate gifs, pictures, and other elements.

 

After they have been published, notes can still be updated.

Twitter stated that writers have relied on the platform "to share their work, be noticed, be read, spark discourse - everything but the actual writing" since the beginning of the business while making the announcement using the new Notes product.

"With Notes, the goal is to fill in that missing piece."

 

The action comes after Twitter bought Dutch newsletter start-up Revue last year.

Dr. Laura Toogood, a social media specialist, said the trial was a big step for Twitter. She claimed that rather than linking out to other websites that can house long-form content, the function will encourage users to remain on the platform itself.

She told the BBC that by adding this added functionality, Twitter is now able to compete with some of the well-known blogging services and perhaps draw in new audiences and different kinds of users.

Additionally, it will encourage current users to blog on Twitter rather than switching to other platforms, which will help them keep their audience.

 

The most recent action comes as Twitter's commercial prospects are under examination due to Elon Musk's proposed purchase of the firm, which raises concerns about its future.

Shortly after Mr. Musk, who had campaigned for such a feature, revealed he had purchased a sizeable share in the company, the company stated in April that it was developing an edit button. The occurrences, according to Twitter, are unrelated.

Additionally, Mr. Musk stated that he believes a subscription model, in which users would be charged to utilize the network, had promise.

It's difficult to tell if Twitter is experimenting with new forms out of profit-seeking or a sincere desire to attempt to enhance the platform, according to Dr. Nikki Usher, a journalism professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

 

They told the BBC, "In this instance, one of the things we do know is that people do not like to read long paragraphs online.

"I thus doubt that giving people 2,500 characters to work with will ultimately improve the standard of the digital public sphere. Is it a chance to make headlines before the organization undergoes some significant changes? Absolutely."