Mark Zuckerberg says Instagram will start testing NFTs this week

Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Instagram will begin testing non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the social network this week.

An NFT is a unique computer file encrypted with an artist’s signature, which acts as a digital certificate of ownership and authenticity.

Unlike similar technologies such as bitcoin, each NFT is in some way unique. This means they can be used for more than just currency.

In the past few years, NFTs have been adopted by people seeking to turn art, music, videos and games into digital assets – and have been hailed as the digital answer to collectibles.

‘This week we’re starting to test digital collectibles on Instagram so creators and collectors can display their NFTs on their profile,’ Zuckerberg said in an update on his Facebook profile.

‘Similar functionality is coming to Facebook soon, along with augmented reality NFTs on Instagram Stories via Spark AR so you can place digital art into physical spaces.’

NFT details are displayed on Instagram in a similar way to tagged profiles and products, and are named ‘digital collectibles’. Clicking on the tag will display details like the name of the creator and owner

Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Instagram will begin testing non-fungible tokens (NFTs), with similar functionality is coming to Facebook soon

What are NFTs?

What is a NFT?

A Non-Fungible Token (NFT) is a unique digital token encrypted with an artist’s signature and which verifies its ownership and authenticity and is permanently attached to the piece.

What do they look like?

Most NFTs include some kind digital artwork, such as photos, videos, GIFs, and music. Theoretically, anything digital could be turned into a NFT.

Where do you buy them?

At the moment, NFTs are most commonly sold in so-called ‘drops’, timed online sales by blockchain-backed marketplaces like Nifty Gateway, Opensea and Rarible.

Why would I want to own one?

There’s an array of reasons why someone may want to buy a NFT. For some, the reason may be emotional value, because NFTs are seen as collectors items. For others, they are seen as an investment opportunity similar to cryptocurrencies, because the value could increase.

When were NFTs created?

Writer and podcaster Andrew Steinwold traced the origins of NFTs back to 2012, with the creation of the Colored Coins cryptocurrency. But NFTs didn’t move into the mainstream until five years later, when the blockchain game CryptoKitties began selling virtual cats in 2017.

Instagram head Adam Mosseri confirmed in a video today that a ‘handful of US creators and collectors’ will have the ability to display NFTs on their feed, stories, and in messages.

‘Right now there are a number of different ways for creators to make money, but a lot of them are unpredictable and changing rapidly,’ he said.

‘We think one really interesting opportunity for a subset of creators is NFTs – the idea of owning a unique digital item.’

NFT details are displayed on Instagram in a similar way to tagged profiles and products, and are named ‘digital collectibles’.

Clicking on the tag will display details like the name of the creator and the owner.

Mosseri said there would be no fees associated with posting or sharing a digital collectible on Instagram.

However, he acknowledged the inherent tension between large companies like Instagram and the decentralised ethos of ‘Web3’, which encapsulates NFTs, blockchain, cryptocurrency, the metaverse and other emergent technologies.

‘NFTs and blockchain technologies – and Web3 more broadly – are all about distributing trust, distributing power. But Instagram is fundamentally a centralised platform, so there’s a tension there,’ said Mosseri.

‘So one of the reasons why we’re starting small is we want to make sure that we can learn from the community.

‘We want to make sure that we work out how to embrace those tenets of distributed trust and distributed power, despite the fact that we are, yes, a centralised platform.’

NFTs use blockchain – the decentralised leger first used by bitcoin to track ownership of the cryptocurrency – to record who owns them and allow them to be traded or modified.

Instagram will initially support NFTs based on the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains, with integrations for Solana and Flow to be added at a later date, a Meta spokesperson confirmed to MailOnline.

The third-party wallets compatible for use at launch will include Rainbow, MetaMask, TrustWallet, with Coinbase, Dapper and Phantom coming soon.

Instagram head Adam Mosseri confirmed in a video today that a ‘handful of US creators and collectors’ will have the ability to display NFTs on their feed, stories, and in messages.

Twitter NFT with first ever tweet is a flop at auction

An NFT of the first tweet from Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey sold in March 2021 for $2.9 million.

The winning bidder was Sina Estavi, the chief executive of Malaysia-based blockchain company Bridge Oracle, who described it as the ‘Mona Lisa of the digital world’.

However, when Estavi put the NFT up for auction earlier this year, it did not receive any bids above $14,000, so he cancelled the sale.

Admitting that he ‘may never sell it’, Mr Estavi told the BBC: ‘I think the value of this NFT is far greater than you can imagine and whoever wants to buy it must be worthy.’

Mosseri emphasised that support for NFTs on Instagram could help to introduce the technology to a broader range of people.

‘We do think one of the unique opportunities we have is to make Web3 technologies accessible to a much broader range of people,’ he said.

‘And NFTs specifically we think will be interesting not only to creators who create NFT art, but also to people who want to collect it.’

Instagram isn’t the first social media platform to introduce NFTs.

Back in January, Twitter introduced the ability for some users to set an NFT as their profile picture, which appears as a hexagon rather than the usual circle.

Although companies and celebrities have been quick to jump on NFTs, however, a recent report by blockchain data firm Chanalysis said the ‘explosive growth’ of the NFT market has ‘levelled off’, with a sharp dip in transactions since February.

The Wall Street Journal also reported last week that the market for the digital art has ‘collapsed’, with sales down 92 per cent from its September peak.

The paper cited data from website NonFungible, which reported that sales had fallen to a daily average of about 19,000 – compared to about 225,000 in September.

The number of active wallets in the NFT market has also fallen 88 per cent to about 14,000, from a high of 119,000 in November.

Meta is testing new tools that will allow ‘Horizon Worlds’ creators to make money in the metaverse

Facebook owner Meta has started testing new tools that will enable creators to sell digital assets within its virtual reality social platform Horizon Worlds.

These could include attachable accessories for a fashion world, for example, or paid access to a new part of a world.

The new tools will be available initially to select users of the company’s immersive platform, accessible via VR headsets.

Meta said these types of tools are a key step toward its long-term vision for the ‘metaverse’ where creators can earn a living and people can purchase digital goods, services, and experiences.

However, the company has confirmed it will charge creators fees of up to 47.5 per cent to sell their virtual wares in its metaverse – significantly more than Apple charges developers on its App Store.