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I notice that the stat the article repeatedly quotes is MAU for usage of the mobile app, but one of the things I love about Bluesky is that you don’t need to us

I notice that the stat the article repeatedly quotes is MAU for usage of the mobile app, but one of the things I love about Bluesky is that you don’t need to use a mobile app to have a good UX. I use the mobile browser to access it, so I’m not in that MAU number. Perhaps bsky has a larger number of active users that don’t use the app?

SoKamil 2mo ago
In fact, this is the same codebase as Bluesky uses react-native-web.
icantevenhold 2mo ago
You aren’t logged in on the browser when you use it?
- bulder 2mo ago
  The figures used don't count browser users at all, signed in or not
  - icantevenhold 2mo ago
    Weird why not? I can’t read the article due to some nightmarish anti Adblock software they use wtf
    - testbjjl 2mo ago
      So you didn’t read the article, made an assumption about its content, question someone who did, then blame Adblock for your confusion, instead of just following the conversation?
      - icantevenhold 2mo ago
        No I was confused that they wouldn’t count the browser users when there is no good reason to when they try to eval their user base? MAU commonly includes web users as well. I blame TechCrunch for creating a website that I can’t read but yea fair criticism I didn’t read the article. I didn’t question GP i asked if they knew why web users aren’t counted. Do they explain in the article why they would only count mobile users as MAU?
lorreyfum 2mo ago
[dead]
dewey 2mo ago
Not having the app installed but being a monthly active user, not just someone who's driving by because they clicked on a link on mobile seems like an edge case and I'm pretty sure it won't make a difference to the numbers.
- Sindisil 2mo ago
  A website being used in a web browser seems to you like an edge case?! Really? If that's really a common view, we really did lose the plot.
  - dewey 2mo ago
    For a social media site on mobile, yes.
    - rglullis 2mo ago
      We really lost the plot, then. None of the user-facing and user-benefiting features of the social media apps need native-specific capabilities.
      - dewey 2mo ago
        It's never about the technology or if it's theoretically feasible but that tracking, push notifications and ad blocking are much better handled in mobile apps for most platforms.
        rglullis 2mo ago
        I'm not sure I follow. Do you think that someone using the Twitter app is more or less tracked than someone using their mobile web browser?
        dewey 2mo ago
        More, as you have the advertising identifiers from Apple / Google on mobile and you are also not able to block tracking scripts / tracking ads like on mobile web (At least not without more effort or installing additional software or a vpn).
mexicocitinluez 2mo ago
Same. With the exception of Reddit (which I use a different client for anyway), I tend to just use the sites themselves. Part of it is just not wanting those apps to invade the rest of my life. I know I can turn off notifications and things, but for some weird reason it helps me stay a bit more detached from social media when I'm forced to rely on the site. The other part is privacy. I don't want the Facebook app on my phone. I don't want to have to worry about what permissions it wants and whether I've unchecked the right things. Using the web is easier for me in that respect.
- Godsend69 2mo ago
  [dead]
Anon1096 2mo ago
To be clear, since the mobile app users are decreasing, what you would actually need to claim is that "web users are more likely to continue using the app than mobile users are", not just that "there are a lot of web users", since the base assumption is that web and mobile users use the site in similar ways. I don't really see any reason to believe the former, and actually having worked on social media extensively I think there's a strong chance that the opposite is true, that if mobile users are declining web users are declining even faster. There's a reason sites push mobile apps so much and it's because retention is normally far better.
- aeternum 2mo ago
  A cursory search of bluesky web vs. mobile (surprisingly) suggests that the web experience might actually be better and users seems to recommend it over the app. This is rare but does suggest a possible effect where users realize this over time and switch.
- Zambyte 2mo ago
  I am extremely active on Bluesky, particularly on mobile. I use the PWA instead of the app on mobile. It works better for me.
pjc50 2mo ago
Not only that, part of the point of the whole "atproto" business is to allow alternate frontends and backends. The official mobile app is kind of bad. A number of people have migrated to Blacksky (alternate backend) following a moderation fallout as well.
inigyou 2mo ago
> you don't need to use a mobile app Since they're apparently tracking mobile app MAUs as a KPI, expect this to change.
- hamburglar 2mo ago
  I sincerely hope not. That would not have the intended effect on me: I’d stop using bluesky. I’m just not that addicted to it.
skybrian 2mo ago
Here’s another site that tracks monthly active users based on people posting or other activity such as liking a post. It also shows a decline in activity. Scroll down and it looks like a decline of about 40% over a year. https://bluefacts.app/bluesky-user-growth?t=3m https://bluefacts.app/bluesky-user-growth?t=3m
- SanjayMehta 2mo ago
  90% of those disappeared users were banned for not being members of their bubble.
zem 2mo ago
I've been an active user for ages now and I didn't even know they had an app! the mobile website works very well.
pier25 2mo ago
I’m probably in the minority but 99% of my bsky usage is on web desktop.

SoKamil 2mo ago

In fact, this is the same codebase as Bluesky uses react-native-web.

icantevenhold 2mo ago

You aren’t logged in on the browser when you use it?

bulder 2mo ago
The figures used don't count browser users at all, signed in or not
- icantevenhold 2mo ago
  Weird why not? I can’t read the article due to some nightmarish anti Adblock software they use wtf
  - testbjjl 2mo ago
    So you didn’t read the article, made an assumption about its content, question someone who did, then blame Adblock for your confusion, instead of just following the conversation?
    - icantevenhold 2mo ago
      No I was confused that they wouldn’t count the browser users when there is no good reason to when they try to eval their user base? MAU commonly includes web users as well. I blame TechCrunch for creating a website that I can’t read but yea fair criticism I didn’t read the article. I didn’t question GP i asked if they knew why web users aren’t counted. Do they explain in the article why they would only count mobile users as MAU?

lorreyfum 2mo ago

[dead]

dewey 2mo ago

Not having the app installed but being a monthly active user, not just someone who's driving by because they clicked on a link on mobile seems like an edge case and I'm pretty sure it won't make a difference to the numbers.

Sindisil 2mo ago
A website being used in a web browser seems to you like an edge case?! Really? If that's really a common view, we really did lose the plot.
- dewey 2mo ago
  For a social media site on mobile, yes.
  - rglullis 2mo ago
    We really lost the plot, then. None of the user-facing and user-benefiting features of the social media apps need native-specific capabilities.
    - dewey 2mo ago
      It's never about the technology or if it's theoretically feasible but that tracking, push notifications and ad blocking are much better handled in mobile apps for most platforms.
      - rglullis 2mo ago
        I'm not sure I follow. Do you think that someone using the Twitter app is more or less tracked than someone using their mobile web browser?
        dewey 2mo ago
        More, as you have the advertising identifiers from Apple / Google on mobile and you are also not able to block tracking scripts / tracking ads like on mobile web (At least not without more effort or installing additional software or a vpn).

mexicocitinluez 2mo ago

Same. With the exception of Reddit (which I use a different client for anyway), I tend to just use the sites themselves. Part of it is just not wanting those apps to invade the rest of my life. I know I can turn off notifications and things, but for some weird reason it helps me stay a bit more detached from social media when I'm forced to rely on the site. The other part is privacy. I don't want the Facebook app on my phone. I don't want to have to worry about what permissions it wants and whether I've unchecked the right things. Using the web is easier for me in that respect.

Godsend69 2mo ago
[dead]

Anon1096 2mo ago

To be clear, since the mobile app users are decreasing, what you would actually need to claim is that "web users are more likely to continue using the app than mobile users are", not just that "there are a lot of web users", since the base assumption is that web and mobile users use the site in similar ways. I don't really see any reason to believe the former, and actually having worked on social media extensively I think there's a strong chance that the opposite is true, that if mobile users are declining web users are declining even faster. There's a reason sites push mobile apps so much and it's because retention is normally far better.

aeternum 2mo ago
A cursory search of bluesky web vs. mobile (surprisingly) suggests that the web experience might actually be better and users seems to recommend it over the app. This is rare but does suggest a possible effect where users realize this over time and switch.
Zambyte 2mo ago
I am extremely active on Bluesky, particularly on mobile. I use the PWA instead of the app on mobile. It works better for me.

pjc50 2mo ago

Not only that, part of the point of the whole "atproto" business is to allow alternate frontends and backends. The official mobile app is kind of bad. A number of people have migrated to Blacksky (alternate backend) following a moderation fallout as well.

inigyou 2mo ago

> you don't need to use a mobile app Since they're apparently tracking mobile app MAUs as a KPI, expect this to change.

hamburglar 2mo ago
I sincerely hope not. That would not have the intended effect on me: I’d stop using bluesky. I’m just not that addicted to it.

skybrian 2mo ago

Here’s another site that tracks monthly active users based on people posting or other activity such as liking a post. It also shows a decline in activity. Scroll down and it looks like a decline of about 40% over a year. https://bluefacts.app/bluesky-user-growth?t=3m https://bluefacts.app/bluesky-user-growth?t=3m

SanjayMehta 2mo ago
90% of those disappeared users were banned for not being members of their bubble.

zem 2mo ago

I've been an active user for ages now and I didn't even know they had an app! the mobile website works very well.

pier25 2mo ago

I’m probably in the minority but 99% of my bsky usage is on web desktop.