Instagram announced on Monday that it’s launching an awards program, with 25 creators set to obtain a gold ring subsequent week. The corporate says the brand new awards program will acknowledge creators all over the world who shift tradition and break obstacles.
The judges panel for the brand new awards program consists of Instagram head Adam Mosseri, director Spike Lee, designer Marc Jacobs, YouTuber Marques Brownlee, actress Yara Shahidi, make-up artist Pat McGrath, and extra.
Winners will obtain a bodily customized ring designed by English designer Grace Wales Bonner, together with a digital golden ring round their Instagram profile. They’ll additionally be capable to design a customized “Like” button that seems when liking feed posts. Notably, winners received’t be receiving any form of financial prize.
The transfer comes as Meta has been scaling again its creator payout packages over the previous few years. Earlier this yr, Meta shut down a program that paid creators for advertisements positioned of their profiles. In 2023, the company stopped offering bonuses to Reels creators on Instagram and Fb. The corporate additionally shut down its affiliate marketing bonuses in 2022.
The launch of the brand new awards program additionally comes as creators noticed a 52% lower in model offers in 2024, based on a survey from Kajabi. Moreover, Financial institution of America mentioned final yr that together with a slowdown in sponsored partnerships, there’s competition in the space, as extra paid partnerships are concentrated among the many prime creators.
Given these current shifts, it’s attention-grabbing to see Instagram launch a symbolic awards program that doesn’t provide any financial compensation to recipients. As a substitute, it’s centered on creating an awards program that’s purported to be just like the Oscars for content material creators (with out an precise ceremony).
The corporate mentioned within the weblog submit that the award is “all about celebrating those that aren’t afraid to take inventive possibilities and do it their approach. Those that carry individuals collectively over their creativity, and deserve recognition.”
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Winners can be introduced on October 16.
