19. May 2022

Instagram and NFT – a centralized love affair?

Instagram wants to move to multi-chain, adding support for Ethereum, Polygon, Solana and Flow blockchains to its platform.

Users will be given the option to showcase their NFTs and tag creators.

Instagram is launching a first test: Creators and NFT ambassadors who are part of the test can now share NFTs that they have created or purchased. Users will be able to add NFTs to their main Instagram feed, Stories, or Messages. Mosseri explained that only a limited number of people have access to the Instagram test, but the company plans to roll out more features related to NFTs in the future as it receives feedback from its initial experiment.

NFTs on Instagram 🎉

This week we’re beginning to test digital collectibles with a handful of US creators and collectors who will be able to share NFTs on Instagram. There will be no fees associated with posting or sharing a digital collectible on IG.

See you next week! ✌🏼 pic.twitter.com/VuJbMVSBDr
— Adam Mosseri (@mosseri) May 9, 2022

Interestingly, Adam Mosseri, Instagram CEO, highlights the conflict between NFTs and Instagram in his tweet. NFTs are inherently decentralized, while Instagram is centralized. Therefore, the platform is starting in small steps to “learn from the community.”

Consequences, criticism

In his LinkedIn article, Sam Ewen, Head of Coindesk Studios, states that Instagram could become the top dog of NFT marketplaces, as it is already the native platform for all kinds of media. If “Minting” becomes part of their repertoire, then the step to becoming a serious NFT marketplace is not far.

Speculation is mounting and several questions are up for discussion: Will Creators benefit from the planned innovations or is it just NFT Ambassadors who are now ahead of the game? What will happen to the idea of decentralisation if the market is dominated by central forces? We have to wait and see.