According to local reports, the Russian social network VKontakte (VK) has announced that it will support NFTs. The technical director of the social media platform, Alexander Tobol, said in an interview that NFTs would be used to monetize user-generated content and protect copyrights. He also confirmed that the social media platform would not create its own blockchain rather act as an intermediary and assistant.

VK is Russia’s most popular social networking platform.

With nearly 650 million users as of April 2021, VK is Russia’s most popular social networking platform. The aim appears to be getting NFTs to encourage user content creation and, by extension, the value generated from them. Tobol said, “our task is precisely to provide the ability to download content easily, create an NFT token, then place it on the exchange. And here, our task as the largest service in Russia for interacting with an audience with an incredible amount of user content is to provide it with this opportunity. And then you can trade on various platforms, be it Solanart, OpenSea, or any then more stories.”

NFT market continues to boom.

NFT market saw a boom in 2021, with the sector seeing $25 billion in sales, up 26,000% from just $95 million in sales the year prior. The NFT market has also brought in the biggest brands, from companies like Nike and Coca-Cola to celebrities like Snoop Dogg and Lionel Messi. VK’s entry into the NFT space is yet another well-known company looking to work with NFTs. This trend has been picking up in recent months, though it hasn’t been without pushbacks. In particular, the gaming industry has been looking to work NFTs in their revenue model, as video games serve as a perfect way to incorporate the unique asset.