Instagram has not had any contenders in the past but now there is a fresh face in the world of social media apps called Pixelfed. It is a decentralised and ad-free platform that is now available on App Store as well as Google Play Store, according to a report by TechCrunch.
What is Pixelfed?
Pixelfed feels a lot like Instagram. It allows you to share photos, like posts, and leave comments but it is only when you take a closer look, you notice that it is not all the same. Pixelfed is built on the ActivityPub protocol. So, what does that mean? Unlike other social media apps, Pixelfed is not a standalone platform. Instead, it is a part of a decentralised network called fediverse. This set up allows your posts to appear on other apps in the fediverse and also enables photo-sharing on different platforms.
Pixelfed went unnoticed until Meta announced major changes to its content moderation policies.That announcement sparked a surge in Pixelfed’s platform. The app posted an update on Mastodon saying that it is experiencing “unprecedented levels of traffic to pixelfed.social.”
Meta vs Pixelfed
Pixelfed hogged the limelight for the first time a week ago when Meta blocked links to Pixelfed shared on Facebook. While this did look like a deliberate attempt to stop users from knowing about the upcoming platform, a report by Engadget revealed that Meta blocked the links to the platform by mistake. Meta says it’s working to fix the issue.
Notably, Meta is also dipping its toes into the ActivityPub protocol. Its Twitter rival, Threads, is starting to allow cross-posting to Mastodon, another fediverse app.
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