In a confirmation of what some people had seen earlier in the week, Twitter raised the follow limit for everyone from 2,000 to 5,000, Engadget reports.

Previously, users could only break that 2,000-user ceiling if they had a high-enough ratio of followers. The company didn't explain why it's suddenly being so liberal, but it's likely confident that its anti-spam tools will prevent bots from abusing this newfound freedom.

It won't be surprising if the higher limit is meant to keep users around longer. For Twitter, attracting people isn't just about suggesting people to follow - it has to make sure there's enough content to read in the first place.

While it's entirely possible to see a lot of activity when users are following 2,000 accounts, the 5,000-user limit increases the chances that people will see something interesting. If nothing else, this will save long-term veterans from having to unfollow some people simply to track others.