One answer is that people will turn to alternative platforms. Because Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp (all owned by the same company) have basically become a tech oligarchy, they have monopolised the social media world. Their status as a monumental tech giant has allowed them to do away with any sort of competition. During the blackout, though, people were desperate to touch base with their families. Downloading more apps seemed like the only option—especially for those trying to get in touch with people in a different country. In an interview with The Guardian, one man explains how he got his 66-year-old mother to download Discord—a popular communication app that is used widely by those in the video gaming community. Additionally, some start-ups saw the outage as an opportunity to make their way into the digital arena and present themselves as an alternative to Facebook.
Another person interviewed by The Guardian said that the social media blackout caused them to stress and worry because they had been relying on WhatsApp for a group project at university. Their assignment was due the next day, but the outage was ongoing. He and his classmates were forced to finish it the following morning. As opposed to the US, a large portion of the population in the UK and EU use WhatsApp as their primary resource for communication. Most do not rely on their phone providers for texting and calling. They instead use WhatsApp for this, as it is a free service. This is especially handy when speaking with people outside of the country, as international services can be so expensive.
It was not everyone’s reaction to desperately grasp at straws for a way to communicate digitally, though. The Guardian article also mentions a woman who viewed the blackout as a liberation. She welcomed the opportunity to connect face-to-face with her loved ones. When the apps were down, there was less time to be distracted by their intrusive nature.
