Mastodon is often considered a “replacement” for Twitter. Admittedly, the user numbers are still far from those on Twitter. However, after every negative message on Twitter – which has been quite a few since Elon Musk took over the platform – Mastodon’s downloads increased significantly. The Financial Times was able to prove this statistically.
On Mastodon, between October and November alone, the number of users increased from 300,000 to 2.5 million per day. At least that’s what German software developer Eugen Rochko (29) writes on his blog, who founded the open-source microblogging website in 2016.
Fingers for venture capitalists
Of course, interest in Mastodon has increased not only among users, but also among investors. According to Rochko, there are at least five investment offers from Silicon Valley venture capital firms.
With all the money Mastodon could fuel his own growth. However, Rochko explains that the platform’s nonprofit status is “untouchable.” It is the independence that makes Mastodon so attractive.
“Mastodon won’t turn into everything you hate on Twitter,” Rochko promises. For example, that the platform could be bought by a billionaire. Or go bankrupt. Or just off.
Twitter has long proven that centralized platforms like Twitter can impose arbitrary restrictions. The text messaging service recently temporarily blocked the accounts of Mastodon, various journalists, and others. But it also lifted the ban on controversial users’ accounts.
Alternative or satellite?
Also, no one earns astronomical sums on Mastodon. Rochko is the sole shareholder of the platform and paid 2400 euros per month last year, according to the 2021 annual report. According to Rochko, this amount has increased by only 500 euros.
So Mastodon will continue to rely on donations to fund the platform. According to the annual report, only 55,000 euros came in the second half of 2021. Development of Mastodon was initially initiated with funds from Patreon and OpenCollective donation platforms and a development grant from Samsung. Donations are likely to increase in 2022. But cash flow is far from millions of venture capitalists. Given the increasing frequency of use of the platform, new servers will certainly be required. This has been clearly demonstrated by server issues in recent months.
It is a matter of curiosity whether Rochko can replace Twitter with his long-term actions. Researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute expect Mastodon to remain a “satellite platform” for Twitter alone. So it’s a place where users can find alternatives to Twitter cuts and exclude themselves on Twitter. However, without seriously threatening the major platform.