Twitter to remove 140 character limit?
Tweets have traditionally been short and sweet. But several sources inside the social media giant have suggested that the 140 character limit could be lifted in favour of something more substantial. A potential update to 10,000 characters could be on the cards for Twitter.
Twitter originally started as an SMS-based service, which is where the 140 limit originated. While there’s a lot of potential for sharing more detailed information, many love Twitter‘s current short and snappy format.
The big players at Twitter have also made comments that suggest a big change for the platform could soon be brought to life, so you know this isn’t just the rumour mill. In a recent tweet, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey (@jack) describes the current 140 character limit as a “beautiful restraint” that “inspires brevity and creativity”.
But he then goes on to wonder what would happen if Twitter users could expand their little tweets to a whole song. Could Twitter go on to be bigger and better, with more message space to share at once? Given that people will often share photos of texts that contain more characters than Twitter allows, an upgrade does make sense. As Dorsey points out: “[w]hat if that text….was actually text?…That’s more utility and power.”
Dorsey does go on to say that they would only explore this if it was something people were interested in. This confirms that the social media site is still aware of what can make it or break it: the people who use the service. Twitter is estimated to have around 974 million accounts, albeit a lot of inactive ones.
Also interesting is the emphasis Dorsey makes on power. There’s no denying Twitter is a platform that can be a powerful friend or foe. It almost sounds slightly ominous as well, like testing the impact of a bomb.
Many people currently use Twitter to check up on what is going on in the world. Since you can get updates straight from the source in real time, it’s an excellent news source. Perhaps this character upgrade could change the face of who reports the news?
If you think the changes to the Twitter character limit may affect your digital strategy, you’re not alone. iFactory are here and fully equipped to handle big shifts in the makeup of web design and techniques to reach your target market. Give us a call to discuss the future of your business’ online presence in the ever-changing world wide web. Follow us on Twittter for all the latest news too.
Helpful articles on Twitter for you:
- A Twitter beginner’s cheat sheet
- How to update your Twitter profile
- Enrich your Tweets with Twitter Cards
- Video comes to Twitter
