The Friday Five: Threads Launches in EU, TikTok Treating Celeb Users Differently, and X in Yet Another Lawsuit

Welcome to a festive edition of The Friday Five – your favourite update on the latest in marketing, tech, and social media!

As we gear up for the Christmas holidays and bid farewell to 2023, we've wrapped up the year with a roundup of the last week to send you off into the festive weekend.

In this edition, explore Meta's Threads launching in Europe, TikTok's unique leniency towards "Super Accounts," and the EU's legal action against X under the Digital Services Act. Uncover marketers navigating a cookieless future and feel the festive spirit with rising consumer confidence in the UK.

Let's jump into this final, festive edition of The Friday Five!

1. After Delays, Threads Finally Launches In Europe

Threads, Meta's answer to X/Twitter has finally launched in Europe reaching 448 million potential users.

Mark Zuckerberg announced the expansion, emphasising the platform's availability in over 100 countries, including the US and UK.

Despite its global presence and promising start, Threads had been inaccessible to EU residents due to the company's concerns about the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a regulatory framework aimed at addressing Big Tech issues.

To coincide with the EU launch, Meta allows regional users to browse Threads without a profile, although posting and interacting with content still require an Instagram account.

This move comes as Meta seeks compliance with the DMA by March 2024, with Instagram head Adam Mosseri citing complexities related to upcoming laws as a reason for the delayed EU launch.

Although the platform has loosened ties with Instagram, requiring only an Instagram account for posting, its ability to retain users remains in question.

The EU launch is expected to attract new users, prompting speculation about Threads' ability to retain them with added features since its initial surge in popularity.

For more, be sure to visit The Verge .

2. TikTok 'Super Accounts' Given Special Leniency By Moderators

TikTok has reportedly granted special status to high-profile accounts, including Russell Brand, according to internal messages obtained by The Guardian.

Moderators in Europe have allegedly been instructed to adopt a more lenient approach to content posted by these individuals.

Internal tags such as "super account," "Top PGC," and "top creator" are said to indicate an elevated status, allowing more leeway for certain users.

TikTok denies the existence of such policies, asserting that its guidelines apply uniformly to all users.

The messages suggest a hierarchy of users, with some accounts enjoying privileges not outlined in official guidelines, leading to questions about the app's moderation practices.

Despite TikTok's stance, internal communications indicate a nuanced approach, where moderators are advised to be more lenient with accounts carrying specific tags, contradicting the platform's emphasis on consistent content moderation.

More on The Guardian 's reporting can be found here.

3. New Digital Services Act Going After X In Latest Lawsuit

The European Union has formally initiated proceedings against X, formerly known as Twitter, under the Digital Services Act (DSA).

The EU accuses X of violating rules related to countering illegal content and disinformation, along with breaching transparency obligations.

The DSA imposes stringent rules on major tech firms, requiring them to take measures against extreme content or face substantial fines and potential suspension.

Digital Commissioner Thierry Breton outlined these alleged infringements on the social media platform.

X asserts its cooperation with the regulatory process and emphasises the importance of a politically unbiased and lawful investigation.

This marks the first formal proceedings under the DSA, with the EU investigating X's systems and policies without prejudging the outcome.

Visit BBC News for more on this.

4. Marketers Still Not Ready For Cookieless Future

A recent survey conducted by Optimizely has revealed that despite Google's decision to phase out third-party cookies in Chrome starting in 2024, 63% of marketers lack a clear strategy for cookieless personalisation.

The study, involving 100 UK marketing professionals, exposes a significant gap in preparation for the post-cookie era, where personalised experiences will heavily rely on direct user interactions.

Additionally, 54% of respondents lack a clearly defined strategy for personalisation using first-party data, showcasing a broader need for reassessment of personalisation strategies.

Currently, 83% of marketers admit that their personalisation efforts rely on assumptions about customers rather than data-driven insights.

Despite concerns (74%) about the obsolescence of current personalisation technology, 73% of marketers believe that privacy and personalisation can coexist, highlighting a growing awareness within the industry of the necessity to balance tailored experiences with robust privacy measures.

Marketing Tech News has more on this story.

5. Christmas Consumer Confidence High

Consumer confidence is rising in the UK ahead of Christmas, according to the latest GfK consumer confidence barometer.

The December results show single-digit increases in every category, with overall sentiment 20 points higher than the same period last year.

The overall index score, combining confidence in personal financial situations and perceptions of the economy, improved from -42 in December 2022 to -22 this year.

While still negative, it marks the second consecutive monthly increase following a significant drop in October.

Consumers have been more positive about their financial situations over the past and next 12 months, with sentiment about the overall economic outlook showing more modest gains.

The major purchases index, reflecting consumers' likelihood of making significant purchases, increased slightly, indicating cautiousness about long-term uncertainties.

For more on consumer confidence, visit Marketing Week !

And that's a wrap for this week's instalment of The Friday Five and the last for 2023!

Thank you to every one of you who joined us for these Friday round-ups over the last 12 months, we've had a blast being able to bring you the latest in the crazy worlds of marketing and social media.

We're off next week but will be back with the first Friday Five of 2024 on Friday 5th January.

In the meantime, we hope you have a wonderful Christmas with your loved ones.