Meta Discontinues NFTs on Facebook and Instagram Less Than a Year After Launch – Here’s the Latest

cryptonews.com:

Senior representatives of Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, announced that the company will be shutting down the ability to buy and sell non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on both platforms, less than a year after the feature was introduced.

"Some product news: across the company, we're looking closely at what we prioritize to increase our focus. We’re winding down digital collectibles (NFTs) for now to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses,” Stephane Kasriel, the head of commerce and financial technologies at Meta, said in a tweet. 

The company representative declared that Meta is looking "forward to supporting the many NFT creators who continue using Instagram and Facebook to amplify their work."

At the same time, Kasriel stated that the social media giant will continue to invest in the rollout of "fintech tools that people and businesses will need for the future. We’re streamlining payments w/ Meta Pay, making checkout & payouts easier, and investing in messaging payments across Meta."

"Let me be clear: creating opportunities for creators and businesses to connect with their fans and monetize remains a priority, and we're going to focus on areas where we can make an impact at scale, such as messaging and monetization opps for Reels," he said.

The latest announcement has triggered a wave of reactions from industry observers and various stakeholders. A significant share of the comments criticized the social media giant.

Among others, Dave Krugman, a Brooklyn-based photographer and founder of the creative community Allships.co tweeted that he considers Meta’s decision to be premature, but also potentially detrimental to the future development of creator-focused digital art marketplaces. 

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