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An artist who was able to pay off credit card debt, a photographer making extra cash by replying to the most polarizing posts she can find, a food blogger trying to start interesting conversations. These are some of the creators Meta is paying to post on Threads. Meta introduced the invitation-only program in April, but has only shared limited details about how it works. Engadget spoke with half a dozen creators who have joined the program over the last few months. They described their strategies for reaching the required engagement metrics, and the sometimes confusing nature of Threads recommendation algorithm. Creators are sorted into different tiers of the program which determines how much their bonuses can be and what kinds of metrics their posts need to hit. None of the creators who spoke with Engadget knew how or why they had been selected for the bonus program, though they all had an established following on Instagram. (One of the known requirements is a professional account on Instagram.) Audrey Woulard is a photographer with more than 25,000 followers on Instagram and about 5,500 followers on Threads. She uses her Facebook and Instagram accounts to promote her portrait photography business. But when she was invited to the Threads bonus program, she saw an opportunity to experiment with different types of content. Her strategy, she says, is all about replies. She exclusively focuses on replying to other users posts rather than creating her own. I'm not necessarily generating content on my own, she explains. I'm kind of activating other people's content. By focusing on replies, she says shes able to reach the required 60 Threads with at least 750 views each to qualify for a $500 monthly bonus. This has helped her become particularly attuned to the types of subjects that are likely to attract a lot of views. Polarizing content, anything that keeps people talking, she explains. Specifically, she looks for topics that people tend to have strong opinions about, like marriage, parenting, aging and politics, though she tries to avoid replying to obvious engagement bait. Woulards experience isnt unique. Threads defaults to a for you timeline that relies heavily on recommended posts rather than posts from accounts you already follow. Meta has also said it doesnt want to encourage users to post about news and politics. Perhaps as a consequence of this, Threads for you feed often feels a lot slower and less focused on current events than on X. What the algorithm does prioritize, though, is posts that get a lot of replies, even if they are about a seemingly mundane topic. This has led to a bizarrely random quality to the feed, what blogger Max Read dubbed the gas leak social network. Its not uncommon to see a recommended post from someone youre totally unconnected to talking about a trivial inconvenience, or a medical condition or some other anodyne anecdote. What these posts do have in common, though, is lots of replies. Its also created an opportunity for people looking to game the apps algorithm by posting spammy content, generic questions or polarizing takes meant to attract as many replies as possible. (Meta execs have said theyre trying to fix this issue after a surge in such posts, even as they acknowledge that posts with replies are most likely to be recommended.) But for Woulard, Metas emphasis on public conversations has worked in her favor. She says that so far shes been able to max out three months worth of bonuses simply by replying to Threads. Woulard generates more income from her Facebook page, but enjoys the simplicity of the Threads bonus program. It's so easy for me to make this money, I can literally sit in my room and reply to a bunch in 30 minutes. For Meta, offering bonuses to Instagram creators to post on Threads is part of its strategy to use Instagram to grow the year-old service. The company has leaned heavily on Instagram to grow Threads, which has already drawn 200 million users. But there were also bound to be some growing pains, says social media consultant Matt Navarra. I think people find it harder to create for platforms like Threads, Navarra tells Engadget. Writing interesting, engaging posts for a text-based platform, like X, Twitter or Threads is a different set of skills. And I think it's slightly tricky for some sorts of creators. Josh Kirkham, an artist who specializes in Bob Ross-style painting videos, has experienced this firsthand. With nearly 800,000 followers on Instagram, hes in the highest tier of the bonus program, which makes him eligible to earn up to $5,000 a month from his posts on Threads. Hes been able to max out his bonus by sharing painting videos clipped from his livestreams on Instagram and TikTok. Despite the success, he hasnt been able to detect any patterns about what types of videos are likely to take off. He has more than 150,000 followers on Threads but, like other creators in the bonus program, relies on the apps recommendation algorithm for his posts to get noticed. Initially, I was posting mountain videos, and those were doing the best compared to everything else, he says, And then a week later, every mountain video was just getting like, nothing. Some of the times the videos that I think are going to do well don't do well at all, and vice versa. Kirkham says that he almost never replies to Threads posts when hes trying to hit a bonus because he worries it will dilute his chances of getting the 5,000 views per post necessary to earn the max payout. Still, he says hes grateful for the program as a full-time artist and creator. Its enabled me to pay off my credit card debt and then raise my credit score immensely, he says. Im hoping for at least a few more. Nearly all of the creators who spoke to Engadget also expressed some skepticism that Meta would continue the bonus program at its current level for very long. In the past, the company has offered creators generous bonuses when its trying to boost a new format like Instagram Reels or Facbook Live only for those payments to eventually dwindle as more people join and Meta inevitably shifts its strategy and funds for creators somewhere else. Logan Reavis is a photographer with nearly 50,000 followers on Instagram and about 8,500 on Threads. Though she has a bigger following on Instagram, she says Threads algorithm feels more favorable to creators. The [Threads] algorithm works entirely different, especially as a photographer, she says. I feel like it's been hard to share my photography on Instagram, but it's encouraged on Threads. I actually reach an entirely different audience. Even so, she says shes had to grapple with the quirks of the Threads algorithm and its penchant for highlighting engagement bait. Responding to threads that have a lot of comments or conversation is what brings in my bonus views more, which is frustrating too because there's a lot of clickbait, she says. Reavis so far hasnt been able to reach her maximum potential $500 monthly bonus on Threads. While creators are part of Metas strategy to make Threads its next billion-person app, the company hasnt always been able to explain what its newest app is actually for. So it shouldnt be surprising that even the creators its paying to post there view it as something of an experiment. I still don't think it has its own unique place in the social media ecosystem, says Navarra. It doesn't really have much of its own identity or personality, and I think that's one of its many problems at the moment.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/creators-getting-paid-to-post-on-threads-dont-understand-its-algorithm-either-065736099.html?src=rss
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The Federal Communications Commission announced that it will open a renewed investigation into broadband data caps and how they impact both consumer experience and company competition. The FCC is soliciting stories from consumers about their experiences with capped broadband service. The agency also opened a formal Notice of Inquiry to collect public comment that will further inform its actions around broadband data caps. "Restricting consumers' data can cut off small businesses from their customers, slap fees on low-income families and prevent people with disabilities from using the tools they rely on to communicate," FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said. "As the nations leading agency on communications, its our duty to dig deeper into these practices and make sure that consumers are put first." This topic has been a hot one of late, and the FCC launched another notice of inquiry about the practice of capping Internet access last year. In April 2024, the agency successfully required that ISPs offer clear information labels on their service plans, detailing additional fees, discounts, and upload and download speeds. Data caps could also come under additional fire as the FCC attempts to restore net neutrality rules, which classify broadband as an essential service. Returning net neutrality has not been a simple journey, however, as the agency faces legal challenges from broadband providers.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/fcc-launches-a-formal-inquiry-into-why-broadband-data-caps-are-terrible-182129773.html?src=rss
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One of the nations largest newspapers is targeting another AI firm for reusing its content without its permission. The Wall Street Journal reported that the New York Times sent a cease and desist letter to Perplexity, the AI startup funded by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The letter states that Perplexitys use of the New York Times content to create answers and summaries with its AI portal violates copyright law. The letter states that Perplexity and its backers have been unjustly enriched by using, without authorizations, The Times expressive, carefully written and researched, and edited journalism without a license and gave the startup until October 30 to respond before taking legal action. Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas told the Journal that they arent ignoring the notice. He added they are very much interested in working with every single publisher, including the New York Times. This isnt the first time an AI company has earned the wrath of the New York Times legal team. The newspaper took OpenAI and Microsoft to court over claims that both used articles from its pages to train its AI software. The suit alleges both companies used more than 66 million records across its archives to train its AI modes representing almost a centurys worth of copyrighted content. Amazon Web Services cloud division also started an investigation over the summer into Perplexity AI. Wired reported that a machine hosted on Amazon Web Services and operated by Perplexity visited hundreds of Condé Nast publications and properties hundreds of times to scan for content to use in its response and data collections.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/the-new-york-times-tells-perplexity-to-stop-using-its-content-175853131.html?src=rss
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