• by Colin Kirkland , October 18, 2024

Decentralized microblogging app Bluesky may have X to thank for another boost in users. With Elon Musk’s social-media app moving closer to fully removing the "block" functionality, Bluesky has onboarded 100k new users. 

On Thursday, Bluesky announced that it gained half a million new users in the 24 hours since X made an announcement about the recent change, marking a direct correlation of movement between both platforms.

X’s block button has historically allowed users to hide their profile from certain accounts.

However, the platform’s recent changes now make it possible for users to view other people’s posts even if they are blocked -- causing a widespread backlash, with some users reporting that they feel uncomfortable about the change and think it will enable and encourage bad actors on X. 

“This is not good at all,” wrote one X user. “Many people block abusive accounts for real world security and safety reasons. You have just taken that away.”

Overall, most X users are confused as to why X has decided to implement this change, as it is uniform across all major social media platforms. In fact, both the App Store and Google Play Store rules state that all social apps must provide a blocking option. 

Therefore, it is no surprise that another swath of X users are looking for an alternative platform that better respects their safety concerns and satisfies their in-app expectations. Bluesky, a direct X competitor, is yet again the app that has benefited most from X’s policy changes. 

In September, when X failed to comply with the Brazilian Supreme Court’s orders to name a legal representative and suppress specific accounts spreading misinformation about the country’s most recent presidential election, the platform was fully banned in the region, cutting off over 20 million users overnight.

In response, Bluesky received 2 million new users and record-high engagement. 

But as Bluesky continues to grow from X’s missteps, the platform has experienced some growing pains keeping up with its new wave of traffic.

After the blocking changes on X went into effect, Bluesky received some reports from users who were struggling to get online and log in to the app, according to The Independent.

Still, Bluesky continues to add more users, making it clear to newcomers, “if you want to block someone, you can!”