How Meta propels Web3 with new NFT-sharing function for Instagram and Facebook

What happened?

• On September 29, Meta announced the roll-out of the new digital collectible function after a successful testing period for selected audiences worldwide. The feature now allows US users to cross-post and share collectible NFT items between Instagram and Facebook, and also link their crypto wallets to either platform. Besides, users in the 100 countries where NFT collectibles on Instagram are supported can already get access to the new function, as per the press release.
• The company has been testing the digital collectible function since May 2022 and regularly posting updates in its newsroom. In August, Meta announced an international expansion of its digital collectible program to countries in Africa, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and the Americas.
• Among the supported wallets to connect to Instagram are now Coinbase, Dapper Labs, MetaMask, Rainbow, Trust, and the list will go on in the future. Supported blockchains already comprise Polygon, Ethereum, and Flow, with Solana to be added soon. Developers promise that crossposting and sharing digital collectibles on Instagram will be free of charge.
• However, the moment of Meta’s latest NFT feature release was not without specific concerns about users’ data safety and confidentiality, especially in terms of giving access to the crypto transaction history when linking digital wallets to Meta’s platform. In turn, the Meta team cooled down users by stating that to provide this feature, they will collect personal information from open blockchains: ‘’From this public blockchain data, we can only identify which collectibles belong to collectors and creators when they connect their third-party wallets to Instagram.’’

How does it benefit the users?

• For both Facebook and Instagram creators, this feature enables somewhat of free Web3 art space to exhibit, share, or pin NFT creations directly on their feed. The Instagram platform will automatically confirm the ownership of the blockchain address related to the NFT item to verify the possession. Digital collectibles will be easy to navigate through and discover in-feed, via the Explore page of Instagram or Bookmarks on Facebook.
• The mechanism will allow both creators and collectors to take more control over their work and benefit from automatic attribution (tagging) in the NFT item publication, a simple digital wallet connection principle, and an easy sharing function. Each NFT-containing post will feature a description of the NFT, ownership data, and other key public information on display.
• According to the team, Meta’s NFT integration program is bound for upgrading user experience by providing creators with wider opportunities for the monetization of content and increasing the global NFT audience: ‘’With the incredible opportunity of blockchain technology, they can now leverage new tools to earn income, and fans can support their favorite creators by purchasing digital collectibles – art, images and videos, music or trading cards – as non-fungible tokens (NFTs)’’, states the company in the press release.

What’s next?

• In actively embedding NFT functions, Meta developers follow in the footsteps of other major social media platforms, such as Twitter and Reddit. Both platforms already introduced the NFT avatar feature in early 2022.
• By supporting NFT initiatives, Meta claims not to be flirting with the universal trend but to promote global values like sustainability, accessibility, and diversity: ‘’It’s critical that our early efforts in this space empower diverse voices and that underrepresented groups have access to emerging digital assets like NFTs. By building support for NFTs, we aim to improve accessibility, lower barriers to entry, and help make the NFT space more inclusive to all communities. It is also important that we keep Instagram a safe and enjoyable place for everyone’’, says the project’s press release.
• This is apparently not the final step in Meta’s integrative Web3 program. As Mark Zuckerberg hinted in a conversation at the SXSW conference, more NFT-beneficial collaborations across Meta’s platforms are already on the way, among which could be posting and sharing the augmented-reality NFT stickers in Stories and the launch of the minting feature for all creators on the Instagram platform. Apart from that, users are to expect the expansion of digital collectibles on Facebook, so the roll-out is just a matter of time.