The news: Meta is experimenting with letting users sign up for Threads through Facebook, potentially attracting older users and further separating Threads’ identity from Instagram.

This will merge information from both platforms, giving Threads advertisers access to more user data and increasing Meta’s cross-platform tracking capabilities.

Unique identity: Until now, users could only sign up for Threads through an existing Instagram account. While that path streamlined onboarding and helped its launch gain attention, it also populated Threads feeds with content based on Instagram data.

• Instagram head Adam Mosseri noted in November that both apps are used differently and that users want separate experiences. “People actually prefer their (Threads) experience if they build a different graph on Threads than the graph that they had on Instagram,” Mosseri said.
• Facebook and Instagram users also post different content: Facebook and Threads are text-heavy, while Instagram’s bread and butter is photos. Bringing more Facebook users onto Threads could help introduce a wider variety of content.