2010 20 Jan

Inactive accounts to be cleared out
Twitter to release old usernames. Software, Websites, Twitter 0

Twitter will soon commence a cull of unused usernames on its service, and release them to the public – a policy that could spark a rush not unlike the Great Land Run of 1889.

Currrently, Twitter regards any account that hasn’t been logged into or updated in over 6 months as ‘inactive’. However inactive accounts aren’t deleted – they just sit there gathering dust and spammy followers. A change in policy is on the way, however. A spokesperson told TheNextWeb that all inactive and deleted usernames will soon be released for others to use.

Previously, some special cases have been able to get squatted names allocated. Those cases contacted Twitter support and if they were judged as suitable then they were granted the name. Both @BBCNews and @CMU got their usernames altered in this manner.

No date has been set for the release, so if there’s a particular name you’re after then keep it bookmarked and check back regularly to see if it’s been made available. It seems unlikely that Twitter would notify people of the date of release in advance, but if we hear anything, we’ll be sure to let you know.

Read

Tags:
Software Websites Twitter

Twitter to release old usernames originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:23:55 +0000

Continue reading from the original source:
NEWS: Twitter to release old usernames

Published under News, Object, Pda, Softwaresend this post

No User Responded in " NEWS: Twitter to release old usernames "

Leave A Reply Here

  Username [*]

  Email Address [*]

  Website

Subscribes to this post comments updates

Please Note: Your comment will be under moderation. Don't resubmit please. Thank you.