Twitter, aside from expanding the number of allowable characters in a tweet, has for the most part avoided dramatic change — until recently.
Thursday, Twitter announced new user-facing features for the first time in ages adding new ways to interact to an evolving Twitter experience.
Some of these seem smart, others could be problematic, but no one will complain about the money they earn as Tips goes global across Twitter. It’s one of the new future paths Twitter is blazing to move forward.
Tip$
Share your PayPal link, Venmo handle after your tweet has gone viral to panhandle in the most modern of ways. Just add your $Cashtag to your profile so others can zip and zap some money your way. Twitter says it won’t be taking a cut of your earnings just as it did during the Tip Jar test that now goes global for everyone.
‘Live Audio’
In Twitter’s Spaces feature it is going to allow recordings of live audio from the conversations and experiences within its Spaces feature.
Twitter ‘Communities’
Twitter is testing a new way to easily find and connect with like-minded people. Uh-oh. I can’t possibly see why terrorists and other evil-minded people wouldn’t enjoy strategizing with each other. When you tweet to your Community, no other followers outside your Community can see it. Twitter says Moderators set the rules and control the conversations. Both members and non-members of Communities can report potential violations of Twitter Rules.
‘Creator Fund’
If Twitter thinks you are a big enough deal, it says it will launch a creator fund to pay creators of live audio on Twitter. Details to come.
How Twitter was really born in 2009
I won’t soon forget the day that Twitter became relevant as a platform. We learned about the “Miracle on the Hudson” on Twitter as it unfolded before any other source. US Air’s Captain Sully Sullenberger skillfully ditched his distressed Airbus packed with 155 passengers safely into the Hudson River. Twitter beat network news by nearly a half hour – and everybody suddenly knew what Twitter was for the first time.
Years later, Twitter needs to evolve. These new changes are what Twitter hopes will make it more relevant into the crowded competitive social media landscape.