NFTs Coming To Instagram This Week - With Ethereum, Polygon, Solana And Flow

Following Mark Zuckerberg's tease in March, Meta finally announced gearing up to support NFTs on Instagram. Also, NFT support for Facebook is right around the corner. 

‍Meta’s Instagram NFT Rollout

The popular photo-sharing app will let NFT creators and collectors link their crypto wallets and display verified collectibles starting this week. However, the update is only for the US, with a gradual rollout that won't be available for everyone at once. 

At first, the new Instagram feature will support Ethereum and Polygon NFTs. Furthermore, Instagram also has plans to add support for NFTs minted on Solana and Flow, other popular blockchains for NFTs. Meanwhile, the wallets supported at launch include MetaMask, Trust Wallet, and Rainbow. In addition, others like Phantom, Coinbase Wallet, and Dapper Wallet will soon be integrated. 

As revealed by Meta, Instagram's NFT images will have a unique "shimmer," visually setting them apart from standard photos. In addition, the Instagram NFT feature has no tied charges, and it would be attributed to both creators and collectors. 

According to a Facebook representative, Facebook will be adding an NFT support soon. Also, Meta is working on adding the ability to use NFTs as augmented reality (AR) stickers on Instagram. To roll out its NFT initiative, the company is with creators like Jen Stark and Gary Vaynerchuk and projects such as Boss Beauties and Adam Bomb Squad.

Meta’s Web3 Approach

Meta's Instagram NFT integration follows Twitter's, which added the ability to display NFT profile pictures for select users. For now, this feature is limited to Twitter Blue subscribers and only supports Ethereum NFTs. While Twitter's feature was seen as a boon, it was also criticized by some. It wasn't only NFT critics complaining about the adverse environmental impact. In fact, NFT supporters also complained about paying for this feature. 

Meanwhile, Meta's Instagram NFT integration is part of the much larger push towards the metaverse. However, it is still unclear whether Meta will embrace an open NFT ecosystem that supports interoperable items and assets. While Facebook's October presentation showed Meta's vision for NFTs, crypto builders have remained widely skeptical of the firm's Web3 approach. 

"I think in a lot of experiences, especially social ones where people are getting together and want to express something about themselves, you're going to want these things to transfer," said Zuckerberg. "I would imagine that if we make this pretty easy for it to be interoperable, then there's going to be a lot of developers [who] will choose for that to be the case, even if not everyone does."