Twitter opens up Spaces for anyone with more than 600 followers

Just a day after Clubhouse announced that it’s testing an Android version of its app in closed beta, Twitter said that its live audio product, called Spaces, is now available for anyone with more than 600 followers.

So if you have more than 600 followers, you can host a Spaces session on Twitter’s iOS or Android app. But no matter how many followers you have, you can still tune in to different live conversations, and get a chance to speak if the moderators of a Space invite you to do so.

The company’s reasoning behind opening up Spaces to folks with this specific follower count is that their sessions might have a bit more traction than users with a lower follower count:

Based on what we’ve learned so far, these accounts are likely to have a good experience hosting live conversations because of their existing audience. Before bringing the ability to create a Space to everyone, we’re focused on learning more, making it easier to discover Spaces, and helping people enjoy them with a great audience. 

Twitter launched Spaces in a test phase last year, and gradually opened it up to more users. The announcement last night is the biggest expansion of the feature yet.

The social network wants to set this product apart from competitors like Clubhouse by allowing hosts to sell tickets for special sessions. Why wouldn’t you pay some money to get into an exclusive and limited session with someone like Rihanna?

This feature is in addition to Twitter’s upcoming “Super follows” that allows you to pay and subscribe to an account for bonus content. Maybe Twitter will also include an option to open up a Spaces session just for your subscribers.

Clubhouse also has a payment option for limited users, but that works more like a tip than a ticket.

Twitter says that in the coming weeks, it’ll also introduce the ability to schedule Spaces and get reminders for sessions. Plus, it’ll allow you to co-host the session with others, add enhanced live captions for accessibility, and improve discoverability.

All of this, and web support for Spaces, will launch within a few months. These features could give Clubhouse a run for its money — although it does have plenty of newly raised funds to play with and compete with Twitter.