[tsimionescu]

Yes, by comparison, approximately no one in the world has heard of PeerTube, Friendica, Mastodon or Disapora. And even of those that have heard of them, few actually use them. Centralized platforms for these things are simply so much more convenient and discoverable that there really is no competition.

Look at the speed with which WhatsApp was adopted (talking about before the FB acquisition), and compare to Mastodon or Diaspora - there is no contest.

[wizzwizz4]

Mastodon is big news in India at the moment, to the point that some newspapers are trying to pretend it's centralised and "hates right-wing people" (because one instance refused an account to a police organisation).

If it's getting newspaper coverage, it's probably not all that niche.