Twitter officially launched the "Mute" feature on Monday, a function that allows users to hide other accounts' tweets from their timelines and silence push notifications without unfollowing or blocking.
The social network had apparently been testing the mute feature for at least a few weeks before rolling it out for all users, The Washington Post reported.
Twitter announced the change in a blog post on Monday, with product manager Paul Rosania writing, "In the same way you can turn on device notifications so you never miss a Tweet from your favorite users, you can now mute users you'd like to hear from less."
When an account is muted, you won't see that user's tweets or retweets on your timeline, and you also won't receive push and SMS notifications if that user mentions you in a tweet. Mute can be turned on or off at any time, so muting another account doesn't have to be permanent.
The unwanted account, which won't note you've selected the mute option, will still be able to interact with your tweets; you just won't be notified. But users should keep in mind that other accounts will likely notice if they're being ignored.
The mute function has launched on the Twitter site as well as the apps for iOS and Android. Users can mute other accounts by looking at a tweet and tapping for more options or by going to the user's page.
TechCrunch's Alex Wilhelm noted that the new feature will take away some of Twitter's sincerity since for the first time, users can't know for sure if their tweets are making it to their followers' timelines or not.
"My gut reaction is that this is going to make Twitter a more boring place," Wilhelm wrote. "Previously, if I wanted you to go away, I had to be up front about it by blocking or unfollowing you. Tales of 'accidental' unfollowing abound on Twitter as people get caught trying to sneak away from their half of a digital relationship. Now you can cut your end of the contract with impunity."
See Now: OnePlus 6: How Different Will It Be From OnePlus 5?
