18th October 2022 – (New York) The global market size for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) clocked at US$ 4.36 billion in 2021. The major factor driving this growth is the increased adoption of cryptocurrencies that facilitate the buying of these NFTs. According to forecasts, the 2022-2028 period is estimated to register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 23.9% in the worldwide NFT market. At the end of the forecast period, the market size is projected to touch US$ 19.57 billion.
This is very impressive for an industry that is slightly under ten years old with the first known NFT, Quantum, minted by Kevin McCoy and Anil Dash on 3rd May, 2014. Digital assets including NFT and crypto have gained global acceptance with new-age investors most of whom are millennials looking to diversify their investments. Currently, over 3,200 NFTs change hands daily.
Facebook’s Push for the Metaverse and NFTs
Meta Platforms, Inc., (Meta) formerly referred to as Facebook, Inc., has made inroads into NFTs. The company has been at the forefront of pushing for the metaverse and has invested billions of dollars. In 2021 alone, Meta poured in US$10 billion with promises of more funding in the next three to five years.
The US$10 billion investment went into designing the metaverse, an emerging segment that to date has employed over 10,000 people in Meta alone. The metaverse which is essentially a shared immersive virtual world is a complete economy in which transactions are facilitated by NFTs and crypto assets. For this reason, Meta has begun rolling out features and properties on Facebook and Instagram that allow for interoperability with digital wallets.
Sharing of Digital Collectibles
Meta has been sharing updates on the steps it’s taking to improve the experience of creators and to help them monetize their assets. One of the outstanding push the company has made so far is to help creators and collectors bring their NFTs to a much broader audience through sharing and cross-posting on Instagram and Facebook platforms. Here are the steps that Meta has taken this far and what you can expect going forward.
Connecting with Digital Wallets
Back in August, Meta posted that they had put in place systems that would allow creators to connect their digital wallets to their Instagram and Facebook accounts. The digital wallets currently permitted are:
- Coinbase Wallet
- Dapper Wallet
- Flow Wallet
- Rainbow wallet
- MetaMask
- Trust Wallet
Once connected, users can then choose what NFTs to share from their wallets on Instagram and/or Facebook. Ordinarily, the NFTs would include art, videos, images, trading cards, music, and so many other creations.
Posting Digital Collectibles
Whether you are a collector or creator, once you post your digital asset on Instagram or Facebook, it will come up with a shimmer effect. It will also display public information including the NFT description. Every NFT post that a user shares, will appear on their profile where their followers can like, comment, and interact with the post much like any other conventional post.
Automatic Attribution
When a creator or collector posts an NFT on Instagram or Facebook, it can be attributed or tagged to them if their privacy settings allow it. For instance, you will have comments like, “XXX owns this collectible “or “YYY created this collectible”.
To enable automatic tagging, Meta collects public data from blockchains such as Flow, Polygon, and Ethereum. Solana is still in the pipeline but expected soon. As a prerequisite for automatic attribution, the user must first connect their wallets to Instagram or Facebook.
Fees and Any Other Charges
Currently, Meta doesn’t charge any fees for users to post their digital collectibles on Instagram or Facebook. Sharing of digital collectibles is open not just to US creators but also to everyone in the 100+ countries that have digital collectibles on Instagram.
Conclusion
Meta is pushing for access to digital assets including NFTs, especially for underrepresented groups. According to the company, building the kind of support that allows creators and collectors to share their digital assets on Facebook and Instagram for free, will allow for inclusivity, accessibility, and increased adoption of digital assets.