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I'd be the last person to downplay the fact that the Bluesky app has a serious retention problem. But it has "broken through" in an incredible way and DAUs/MAUs

I'd be the last person to downplay the fact that the Bluesky app has a serious retention problem. But it has "broken through" in an incredible way and DAUs/MAUs are quite stable. Registered users is not at all meaningless. Bluesky has those user's email addresses, the mobile app is still installed on many of their devices, they have accounts, and they can potentially be reactivated. For example, if Bluesky announced a feature exciting enough, like subcommunities, it could email those 50M users and possibly bootstrap a serious open network competitor to Reddit.

ftfish 4mo ago
A chunk of these registered users are apparently "ghost accounts" hosted on a PDS on a trump.com subdomain. https://bsky.app/profile/tyggero.cz/post/3moskpisnuc2t https://bsky.app/profile/tyggero.cz/post/3moskpisnuc2t Source: https://sifa.id/stats https://sifa.id/stats Statement from Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/pfrazee.com/post/3mmp27wwnic2j https://bsky.app/profile/pfrazee.com/post/3mmp27wwnic2j
- jacobgold 4mo ago
  Based on your comments, it seems like you're trying to spread FUD? The stats page you linked to explains exactly what's going on. These spam PLC identities have nothing to do with with the tens of millions of real Bluesky registered users. Either you misunderstood or you're being intentionally dishonest.
  - ftfish 4mo ago
    Never said that, though, plus provided sources. Just adding context for what the total number of users means.
    - jacobgold 4mo ago
      You still seem to be implying the number of real registered users on Bluesky isn't ~50M, which it is. The PLC identity spam you referenced is not being counted in this number.
      - ftfish 4mo ago
        If that's the case, then I stand corrected, but a source for that claim would be helpful.
        jacobgold 4mo ago
        I was rounding up, the actual number is ~45 million: https://bsky.jazco.dev/stats https://bsky.jazco.dev/stats (these stats are based on real activity, not PLC identities) At current rate it will 50M in 6 months.
        likpok 4mo ago
        Why do you project 10% growth over the next 6 months? Looking at the other metrics on that page which have history (total unique likers, posters, followers), the numbers are flat or declining. That shape doesn’t seem great for a social media company.
      - verdverm 4mo ago
        It is confusing to say "users" when it is actually "accounts", humans tend to associate "user" with another human, where as "account" can cover people and bots (many on atproto) eg. I personally had more than a dozen accounts
        jacobgold 4mo ago
        That's a fair distinction to make but my (educated) guess is that something like 95% of users have a single account on Bluesky. Most users signed up by downloading the app or visiting the web site and created a single account. As a point of reference, the official Google Play store independently verifies that the Bluesky app has had 10M+ installs. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=xyz.blueskyweb.app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=xyz.blueskyweb... There are no official stats on the iOS app or web but those are both likely similar or larger sources of users.
        4mo ago
tptacek 4mo ago
I don't believe the firm behind Bluesky can go to an investor and say "look at all these email addresses we have" and raise on that.
- jacobgold 4mo ago
  Of course investors care about registered users, for the same reason I explained. But yeah, they do care a lot more about retention and growth rate for good reason. Bluesky Social, PBC has raised $120M+ dollars from investors.

ftfish 4mo ago

A chunk of these registered users are apparently "ghost accounts" hosted on a PDS on a trump.com subdomain. https://bsky.app/profile/tyggero.cz/post/3moskpisnuc2t https://bsky.app/profile/tyggero.cz/post/3moskpisnuc2t Source: https://sifa.id/stats https://sifa.id/stats Statement from Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/pfrazee.com/post/3mmp27wwnic2j https://bsky.app/profile/pfrazee.com/post/3mmp27wwnic2j

jacobgold 4mo ago
Based on your comments, it seems like you're trying to spread FUD? The stats page you linked to explains exactly what's going on. These spam PLC identities have nothing to do with with the tens of millions of real Bluesky registered users. Either you misunderstood or you're being intentionally dishonest.
- ftfish 4mo ago
  Never said that, though, plus provided sources. Just adding context for what the total number of users means.
  - jacobgold 4mo ago
    You still seem to be implying the number of real registered users on Bluesky isn't ~50M, which it is. The PLC identity spam you referenced is not being counted in this number.
    - ftfish 4mo ago
      If that's the case, then I stand corrected, but a source for that claim would be helpful.
      - jacobgold 4mo ago
        I was rounding up, the actual number is ~45 million: https://bsky.jazco.dev/stats https://bsky.jazco.dev/stats (these stats are based on real activity, not PLC identities) At current rate it will 50M in 6 months.
        likpok 4mo ago
        Why do you project 10% growth over the next 6 months? Looking at the other metrics on that page which have history (total unique likers, posters, followers), the numbers are flat or declining. That shape doesn’t seem great for a social media company.
    - verdverm 4mo ago
      It is confusing to say "users" when it is actually "accounts", humans tend to associate "user" with another human, where as "account" can cover people and bots (many on atproto) eg. I personally had more than a dozen accounts
      - jacobgold 4mo ago
        That's a fair distinction to make but my (educated) guess is that something like 95% of users have a single account on Bluesky. Most users signed up by downloading the app or visiting the web site and created a single account. As a point of reference, the official Google Play store independently verifies that the Bluesky app has had 10M+ installs. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=xyz.blueskyweb.app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=xyz.blueskyweb... There are no official stats on the iOS app or web but those are both likely similar or larger sources of users.
        4mo ago

tptacek 4mo ago

I don't believe the firm behind Bluesky can go to an investor and say "look at all these email addresses we have" and raise on that.

jacobgold 4mo ago
Of course investors care about registered users, for the same reason I explained. But yeah, they do care a lot more about retention and growth rate for good reason. Bluesky Social, PBC has raised $120M+ dollars from investors.