Twitter favorites have now become Twitter likes, perhaps to compete with Facebook. The update rolls out today, and according to the company, it shows that one can like many things, but not everything can be one’s favorite. Twitter, which is joined by Vine in the implementation of hearts into their platforms as opposed to stars, seems to be quite keen on semantics.
The update is soon to roll out on Vine, but it’s currently already on Twitter for Android and iOS, TweetDeck, twitter.com Twitter for Windows 10 and on the Vine Android app and website. The update had its test run on Periscope, and seeing the positive response, the company has decided to expand.
This could be, however, an attempt to join in Facebook’s success, whose ‘like’ feature has always had excellent performance since its inception. Much buzz always surrounds Facebook’s like, since it is both clear and vague, genuine yet slightly shady. Twitter, along with its subsidiaries Vine and Periscope, might be trying to milk some of that success and bring it to their own platforms. Twitter favorites, though it seems more relevant than a heart that represents a like, hasn’t become popular since inception, so this move could be an attempt to make Twitter more accessible and more engaging to users.
Reaction to this update has been surprising, Twitter has been one company to be more distinct to other social media platforms, but it looks like it’s started to align itself against competitors in a big way by getting rid of Twitter favorites and bringing in likes.
