When you post anything on Threads, you give Meta a free, global license to use, copy, modify, and build on your content across its services, subject to your privacy settings.
This analysis describes what Threads's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
The license grant establishes Threads' operational authority to process, store, and repurpose user-generated content across its service infrastructure and derivative applications without paying licensing fees, while retaining user ownership of the underlying content.
Interpretive note: The practical scope of the limitation 'consistent with your privacy and application settings' is not fully defined in the document, creating ambiguity about how settings choices constrain Meta's exercise of the license.
Severity increased from medium to high; scope narrowed from 'share, post, or upload content that is covered by intellectual property rights' to simply 'posting content'; reference changed from 'application settings' to 'privacy settings and in accordance with this policy'.
View full change record →While the updated version retains the core content license, this specific formulation's removal (with its 'covered by intellectual property rights' qualifier and 'application settings' reference) eliminates a potential limitation on the license scope.
View full change record →Any content you post on Threads, including photos, text, and videos, can be used, modified, and sublicensed by Meta worldwide for purposes that extend beyond displaying your posts, subject to your privacy settings at the time of posting.
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"When you share, post, or upload content that is covered by intellectual property rights on or in connection with our Service, you hereby grant to us a non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content (consistent with your privacy and application settings).Excerpt from Threads's Terms of Use
(1) REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: This provision implicates GDPR Articles 6 and 13 regarding lawful basis and transparency for processing personal data embedded in user content, as well as the requirement for informed consent where processing extends …
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The license grant establishes Threads' operational authority to process, store, and repurpose user-generated content across its service infrastructure and derivative applications without paying licensing fees, while retaining user ownership of the underlying content.
Any content you post on Threads, including photos, text, and videos, can be used, modified, and sublicensed by Meta worldwide for purposes that extend beyond displaying your posts, subject to your privacy settings at the time of posting.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 142 platforms. See the full comparison.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Threads.