Sections of this topic
In this article, we’ll look at the latest development in the social media landscape as Facebook’s parent company, Meta, confirms that it is building a decentralized, text-based social networking platform.
Key takeaways:
- Facebook’s parent company, Meta, is developing a decentralized social network platform called P92, based on the ActivityPub protocol used by Mastodon.
- P92 will allow creators and public figures to share timely updates about their interests and will have familiar features like links with content previews, verification badges, and followers and likes.
- Users will log in with their Instagram credentials, and the platform will use all of Instagram’s data for analytics, product improvement, and ranking.
- Decentralized platforms are being touted for their supposed resistance to censorship, and P92 may allow for different moderation policies on different servers.
- Other alternatives to Twitter, like Mastodon, T2, and Post News, are gaining traction.
- Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s Bluesky is also in private beta testing and is seen as an upgrade to ActivityPub.
- Decentralized social media platforms are rising as users become more aware of the risks associated with centralized platforms.
- The future of social media is likely to be decentralized, and time will tell which platform will emerge as the leader in the decentralized social media space.
Meta Confirms Development of Decentralized Social Network Platform
Facebook’s parent company, Meta, has announced that it is developing a decentralized social network platform called P92, which will allow creators and public figures to share timely updates about their interests.
Unlike the company’s Metaverse project, which failed to attract public interest, P92 will be a standalone decentralized social network.
It will be based on the ActivityPub protocol used by Mastodon, a Twitter competitor that has gained popularity among tech influencers and celebrities.
P92’s Features and Unique Login Credentials
P92 will have familiar features such as links with content previews, usernames and bios, verification badges, shareable images and videos, followers, and likes.
Although commenting and messaging might not be available in the first version of the product, they will be added eventually.
One unique feature of P92 is that users will log in with their Instagram credentials, and the platform will use all of Instagram’s data “for the purposes of analytics, product improvement, and ranking,” including that of users who haven’t signed up to the new network.
Decentralized Platforms and Resistance to Censorship
Decentralized platforms are being touted for their supposed resistance to censorship by some, including Twitter founder Jack Dorsey.
Groups operating on different servers can adopt different moderation policies, making it difficult for any one entity to control the content.
While the new network will make use of Instagram’s privacy policy, it is not known whether it will use that platform’s restrictive content policies as well.
Potential Competition and Decline of Twitter
Meta’s announcement of developing a decentralized social network platform is a sign of its interest in entering Twitter’s territory.
Twitter has been facing a decline in daily active users, and Mastodon, a decentralized alternative, gained popularity among users unhappy with Elon Musk’s actions as Mastodon’s new CEO.
Other Twitter alternatives such as T2 and Post News have also received investments from prominent Silicon Valley firms.
This suggests that the dominance of centralized social media platforms may be coming to an end as users increasingly explore decentralized options.
Bluesky, a decentralized social media platform developed by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, is also in private beta testing.
It has its own AT Protocol, which the company sees as an upgrade to, and replacement for, ActivityPub.
The Future of Social Media is Decentralized
As more people become disillusioned with centralized social media platforms, the rise of decentralized social media platforms indicates the potential for decentralized networks to gain mainstream adoption.
With Meta’s latest project, P92, and Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s Bluesky both exploring decentralized alternatives to Twitter, it’s clear that the era of centralized social media dominance may be coming to an end.
Only time will tell which platform will emerge as the leader in the decentralized social media space, but one thing is certain: the future of social media is decentralized.
