Snapchat has announced the discontinuation of the Solar System feature, available only to users who subscribe to Snapchat+ monthly subscription service, following reports of concern and discomfort among teenage users who have interacted with this feature.
Solar System was a playful feature on Snapchat used to show how close or distant we are from our friends in a celestial system format. Users could designate their friends as suns and determine their own planet based on proximity – for example, being Mercury meant being very close to the sun and intimate friends, while being Uranus meant being far apart.
The Wall Street Journal reported on some teenage users feeling discomfort when they discovered that their real-life partners were distant planets on Snapchat, leading to demands for Snapchat to review the use of this feature.
In a subsequent statement, Snapchat clarified that their features relating to friend intimacy on the platform include various aspects such as Best Friends, displaying the names of intimate friends at the top of contacts, Streaks to track continuous conversations with friends over days, and the Solar System feature, exclusive to Snapchat+ subscribers, with only 0.25% of users utilizing it. The information displayed in the celestial system is limited to interactions with one friend, without ranking or rating relationships. Snapchat developed this feature with the hope of improving and acknowledging the status of relationships through aligned conversations.
However, Snapchat noted that the feedback on this feature had been mixed, with some users feeling worse after using it, leading to the decision to shut down the feature altogether.
TLDR: Snapchat is discontinuing the Solar System feature following concerns from users, as it aimed to represent friend intimacy but resulted in mixed feedback and discomfort among users.
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