Twitter just enabled its brand new bitcoin tipping feature across the world for iOS users for ‘turning fans into funds’. Users can now use this feature to support their favorite creators.
Twitter’s tip feature: All about it
After several rumors, Twitter officially released its tips feature across the world. The feature includes a bitcoin integration through the lightning network. The feature allows users to tip content creators via third-party apps such as Cash App, operated by Square. However, they wish to make monetization accessible in all places. Hence, bitcoin tipping.
Mobile developer Alessandro Paluzzi leaked a rever-engineered image of Twitter’s feature which shows the beta version for lightning integration with Tips. He added that this integration would use Strike, a Lightning-focused app.
How is bitcoin tipping made possible?
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The bitcoin tipping feature uses the Lightning Network. It is selected by-product manager Esther Crawford and his team for the low transaction fees. Users can easily add their bitcoin address or bitcoin’s lightning wallet and send or receive tips in bitcoin. However, as of now, this integration is only available for iOS. Android users will soon get this new feature.
According to Crawford, Twitter’s product team is investigating more ways to enable payouts across nations. However, using bitcoins to tip relocates it. “We want everyone to have access to pathways to get paid digital currency that encourage more people to participate in the economy and help people send each other money across borders and with as little friction as possible help us get there,” said Crawford.
What’s next for Twitter?
Crawford also mentioned that Twitter is exploring several other crypto integrations and blockchain-based tools. He also shared that the team was in the early stages of exploring Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs).”There’s a lot of internal enthusiasm and dialog around how can we integrate crypto throughout these different monetization features,” said Crawford during the briefing. “There are other potential options that we don’t have in place today, but we’re open to exploring it.”
However, Twitter is yet to decide on the authentication visuals. “We’re interested in basically making it somehow visually clear that this is an authenticated avatar and then give you some interesting info and insight about the provenance of that NFT, so that’s kind of where we’re at today,” said Crawford. Moreover, non-crypto features such as real-time filters are also going to soon roll out.
