Twitter begins to relax its 140-character limit

Twitter users will soon be able to squeeze a few extra characters into some of their tweets. The social network is changing up the rules surrounding its 140-character limit so that images, polls and user names won't count against the site's famous (or perhaps infamous) restriction. The changes are expected to roll out to Twitter's apps and website "over the coming months."

Though not technically an expansion of its character limit, the updates will allow users to create tweets in some cases that are slightly longer than what was previously allowed. Under the new rules, photos, videos, GIFs, polls and quoted tweets will no longer count toward a tweet's character limit. User handles in replies will also be excluded from a tweet's character limit.

This means that replies will look a little different once the changes roll out, as user handles will no longer appear ahead of replies. Instead, Twitter will surface contextual details about the conversation outside of the tweet itself. The company hasn't said exactly how these changes will look, but its developer guidelines, published Tuesday, offer some hints.

Speaking of quoted tweets, Twitter is also adding another long-requested feature: the ability to quote and retweet your own tweets. This change should offer an alternative to tweetstorms, as you'll now be able to include your previous tweets.

Finally, tweets that begin with user handles (@username) will surface in timelines the same way as other tweets — meaning users will no longer need to preface these tweets with a period or other character in order for their followers to see it. (Replies will still only be seen by people who follow both users in a conversation, though.)

Rumours have persisted since last year that Twitter is looking to move beyond its 140-character limit. A report earlier this year suggested the service may even be eyeing a 10,000-character limit.

Though Tuesday's preview of the forthcoming updates made no mention of a formal expansion of Twitter's character limit, the changes will, in practice, allow users to post slightly longer tweets than previously allowed in some instances. Photos, for example, currently take up 24 characters, so users will now be able to squeeze in an extra word or two into those tweets.

Of course, Twitter users were quick to respond to the news, with many of the reactions mixed. But some expressed concern that the new @-reply function would be confusing without handles appearing before a response.

Meanwhile, Twitter's senior product manager Todd Sherman hinted in the company's official blog post that even bigger changes could be on the way.

"In addition to the changes outlined above, we have plans to help you get even more from your Tweets," he wrote. "We’re exploring ways to make existing uses easier and enable new ones, all without compromising the unique brevity and speed that make Twitter the best place for live commentary, connections, and conversations."

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