Reasons Social Media Platforms are Expanding Into SocialFi and NFTs
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Extractive. This is the best way to describe the current model of social media landscape as we know it. Most social networks sell their users’ data so they can benefit from advertising. But with the advent of the Web 3.0 and the metaverse,more and more people are getting interested in DeFi (decentralized finance) and NFTs. Pioneer cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum,including some altcoins,are rising into popularity. So where is DeFi heading now?
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This is where SocialFi enters the frame. Short for social finance,SocialFi pertains to the combination of social networking and blockchain finance. SocialFi allows users to gain income from creating content,participating in decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) governance,NFT minting,interacting with fellow users,watching entertainment content,and gaming. Not similar to the Web 2.0 social networks that people are more knowledgeable about,SocialFi projects offers better privacy and security to users’ personal data,fair distribution of advertising revenues,and a much better user experience.
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Due to the growing popularity of the SocialFi space,traditional social media networks are looking into the integration of NFT into their platforms. Here are some of the social giants that have started integrating into or exploring the NFT space.
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Facebook/Meta
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As of 2021,Facebook has an estimated 2.89 billion users. This does not come as a surprise knowing how Facebook dominated communication in Web 2.0. The giant is now taking huge steps as it transitions to Web 3.0. Now known as Meta,the company is poised to establish the world’s largest social media metaverse.
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Twitter also has plans to integrate cryptocurrencies into their platform. In fact,they have introduced a new feature that lets their Twitter Blue account users to display their NFT as their profile photos.
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Similar to Twitter,Reddit also has its NFT profile photo feature rollout. The company is also looking to build an NFT marketplace soon and convert people’s Karma points into tokens.
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Instagram has not yet jumped onto the NFT wagon yet. But the CEO of the photo-sharing platform has recently announced that the company is exploring the NFT space. According to the CEO,the company is hoping to give their user base with access to NFTs.
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YouTube
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According to Radian Community,YouTube has always been active in expanding its reach and diversifying its ecosystem. In fact,it has already started considering NFTs as an alternative revenue source for their growing community of content creators. The company has been distributing personalized NFTs to their influencers. In addition,they have announced that creators can monetize their video content and sell them as NFTs.
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Today,NFTs are not made,bought,or sold on any social platform. Nevertheless,an NFT project’s success heavily relies on the creator’s marketing efforts on social platforms. As these platforms passively affect the future of NFTs,tech giants find chances to have a direct involvement in the space.
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SocialFi offers new opportunities to everyone – from social media users to social media companies. Looking into the growth of its ecosystem in the Web 3.0 era,it is not hard to see what heights SocialFi can reach in the coming years.
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