Twitter’s expiring tweet function is going to expire for good.
The company is shutting down Fleets because it failed to inspire more people to post on the platform.
“In the time since we introduced Fleets to everyone, we haven’t seen an increase in the number of new people joining the conversation with Fleets like we hoped. Because of this, on August 3, Fleets will no longer be available on Twitter,” the company said on Wednesday.
The function is similar to Instagram Stories. Fleets can be viewed by going to a special section on top of the Twitter timeline over the mobile app. But unlike a standard tweet, a fleet only remains online for 24 hours before expiring. The content also can’t be retweeted, liked or publicly replied to.
The limitations were imposed to create a “low-pressure” way for people to use Twitter without having to worry about the reaction from other users. The company named the function Fleets as a way to post your fleeting thoughts. But the real goal was to encourage more people, especially less active internet users, to share over the platform.
However, the function never took off as envisioned. “Although we built Fleets to address some of the anxieties that hold people back from Tweeting, Fleets are mostly used by people who are already Tweeting to amplify their own Tweets and talk directly with others,” the company said.
Twitter is going to axe the function less than a year after it was officially launched. However, some of the features from Fleets will live on. “Soon, we’ll test updates to the Tweet composer and camera to incorporate features from the Fleets composer —like the full-screen camera, text formatting options, and GIF stickers,” Twitter said.
“We’ll explore more ways to address what holds people back from participating on Twitter,” the company added. “And for the people who already are Tweeting, we’re focused on making this better for you.”
