By “allowing them to generate new forms of digital products to market,” Meta thought, Web3 would improve the economic paradigm for creators.
In less than a year since introducing NFT-related capabilities, Meta Platforms Inc has stated (1) that it will discontinue support for NFTs on its Facebook and Instagram networks. CEO Stephane Kasriel tweeted the announcement.
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. 🧵[1/5]
— Stephane Kasriel (@skasriel) March 13, 2023
It is still premature for Meta to delve deep into the NFTs business, as Kasriel has explained. Thus, Meta will put its efforts where it can have the greatest influence “at scale.” In particular, this refers to the realm of financial instruments like Facebook’s Messenger Payments, Instagram Payments, and the online retailers that accept the payment option known as Meta Pay.
In his words, Kasriel said:
Reels’ communications and monetization features will be prioritized as they represent areas where we can have the greatest effect.
And we’ll keep putting money into the fintech technologies that individuals and companies will require down the road. We’re investing in message payments across the board and simplifying the payment process with Meta Pay.
In May 2022, Meta initially announced inclusion for NFTs on Instagram and Facebook, paving the way for content creators to make and sell their own digital collectibles straight to fans on Instagram.
In addition, Meta enhanced this support in November 2022 by introducing new tools for creators who work with both platforms. NFT, Instagram, and Facebook Stars all got updates.
Meta also included features that make it easier for artists to mint, exhibit and sell NFT-driven digital collections.
Meta originally anticipated that “giving them the capacity to develop novel kinds of digital assets to monetize” would be a significant way in which Web3 would enhance the financial model for creators.
While the company still holds this view, it has decided to cease development of the technology due to difficulties the company encountered toward the end of 2022.
Metaverse Has been a Loss Making Entity
Meta ran into significant financial difficulties in the latter half of 2022. Per the company’s most recent annual report, the metaverse was responsible for as much as $14 billion in losses.
Hence, the corporation had to find ways to reduce its expenses, and one of the options made was to reduce the size of its global labor force by 13%, affecting about 11,000.
Significantly, the layoffs were the largest in the software giant’s history and affected many different divisions, most severely the business and recruiting teams.
Most recently, in February, Meta announced that more layoffs could occur due to uncertainty over spending and staffing levels.
More than two-thirds of Facebook’s market value has been wiped out since the business changed its name to Meta Platforms in October 2021. Meta surpassed all other S&P 500 companies in terms of performance decline in 2022.
At the time of writing, Meta Stock was up 5%, exchanging hands at $ 190.14.
Soaring metaverse costs, a weak economy, intense competition from TikTok and Apple’s privacy update, and restricted ad targeting are just some of the elements that have contributed to the company’s dilemma.
Lately, Meta has proclaimed 2023 as the “Year of Efficiency.” The firm’s current mission is to become a more powerful and responsive organization, boost productivity, and zero in on projects that will ultimately benefit the firm.