Twitter is the latest company to embrace cryptocurrency. The social media giant announced on Thursday that users will now send and receive Bitcoin.
The move is a broader push for Twitter to aid users to tip their favorite content creators.
Twitter first tested the tip feature back in May. The experiment helped creators earn money from their legion of followers for the content shared on the platform.
The feature is slated to premiere globally on the Apple iOS platform this week. Android users will wait a few more weeks for an official rollout.
Bitcoin wallet integration with tipping feature
Before the new feature, Twitter users tipped creators with fiat currency through PayPal’s Venmo and Square’s Cash app. That option is now outdated, thanks to Twitter’s integration of Strike Bitcoin wallet service into their platform.
The social media giant will also allow users to add their Bitcoin addresses to aid in sending and receiving digital currency tips.
Fortunately for users, Twitter won’t take a cut of your money sent via the new feature.
Twitter jumping on the crypto bandwagon — and integrating Bitcoin in their tipping feature — is no surprise considering Twitter’s billionaire CEO, Jack Dorsey, relentlessly champions the adoption of cryptocurrencies.
Dorsey, in a recent tweet, conveyed interests in Bitcoin mining. He said nothing’s more important to focus on than Bitcoin. He believes it’s the gateway to the world’s peace.
Twitter setting its sights on NFTs
Soon, Twitter users will also verify and showcase their NFT’s digital assets collections on the social network, according to the announcement.
Again, not a surprising move as Twitter is awash with NFT investors willing to flaunt their ridiculously expensive NFT-based Cryptopunks avatars. (Hello, Jason Derulo).
The company is yet to disclose more specific details about this cryptocurrency project. However, Twitter believes adopting non-fungible tokens will support digital art creators on the platform, and for a good reason.
Twitter is also set to unveil a creator fund for users hosting Spaces audio rooms as a way to encourage the creation of more live audio events. Last year, Twitter launched Spaces — a feature for live audio conversations on the social platform.
The social media giant is even more hopeful that the new tip feature will take flight, and become more widely accepted across the crypto world. It’ll be interesting to see how other mega tech companies will make use of cryptocurrencies on their platforms.
Twitter’s Thursday’s announcement is part of the company’s efforts to compete with Facebook and YouTube. Both companies boast large followings of content creators.
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