The social network Bluesky has launched group chat support on its platform, a move aimed at increasing competitiveness against rival X and shifting focus towards community features.
What Happened
Bluesky's latest mobile app update (v1.124) includes the new feature, which allows users to create group chats with up to 50 participants. This is a smaller limit compared to X's standalone XChat app, which supports up to 1,000 members. However, Bluesky has stated that it plans to increase this number in the future.
Group chat creators can manage their conversations by determining who can participate and creating custom invitation links. Users can also control who is allowed to invite them to chats, with options including everyone, only people they follow, or no one at all. The default setting will be "only people you follow," unless users choose a different option for private messages.
Media sharing in group chats is not yet supported due to the need for additional safety and moderation systems. This limitation may change as Bluesky continues to develop its community features.
Background and Context
Bluesky's decision to launch group chat support comes at a time when the company is shifting its focus towards community features. According to Alex Benzer, head of product at Bluesky, the platform will introduce more community-oriented features in the future. This strategic pivot reflects an update to the company's strategy amid slower growth: Bluesky now has approximately 44.8 million registered users compared to X's 600 million monthly active audience.
Bluesky added messaging support in 2024, but only recently began offering encrypted chats through integrating the third-party Germ service. The new feature is part of a broader effort to make the platform more competitive with its larger rival, X.
Why it Matters to the Industry
The launch of group chat support on Bluesky's platform has significant implications for the adult industry. As platforms continue to evolve and compete for users' attention, community features are becoming increasingly important. By introducing group chats and communities, Bluesky is providing a more private and controlled space for users to interact with each other.
This shift towards community features may also impact moderation and age-gating practices within the adult industry. As platforms like Bluesky focus on user-owned spaces, moderation rules are set by the community rather than the platform. This could lead to new challenges and opportunities for adult-industry operators and developers.
What Comes Next
Bluesky's head of product, Alex Benzer, has outlined plans to build communities on the underlying AT Protocol with support from the wider developer ecosystem. These communities will have their own handle that doubles as a URL, like community-name.bsky.social, and can be set as public, invite-only, or private.
The timing of Bluesky's pivot towards community features is deliberate, given X's recent decision to shut down its Communities feature due to low usage and spam. By catering to users who want more control over their online communities without Big Tech intermediaries, Bluesky is attempting to differentiate itself from larger competitors.
Key Facts
- Bluesky launched group chat support on its platform with up to 50 participants per chat.
- The feature is part of a broader effort to make the platform more competitive with rival X.
- Bluesky has approximately 44.8 million registered users compared to X's 600 million monthly active audience.
- Media sharing in group chats is not yet supported due to safety and moderation concerns.
- Bluesky plans to increase the limit for group chat participants in the future.
The launch of group chat support on Bluesky's platform marks an important step towards community features, but its impact on the adult industry remains to be seen. As platforms continue to evolve and compete for users' attention, it will be interesting to observe how this shift affects moderation practices and age-gating measures within the industry.
