What is the Fediverse? A guide for publishers and the uninitiated.

Traditional social media, as most people know it, is extremely popular. It provides a convenient way for individuals to keep up with news, interact with others, and for publishers to share content with millions. However, it also places immense power in the hands of a few large corporations like Meta and Google. These entities control much of the data and content flow behind the scenes. A change in a platform’s algorithm can dramatically alter a publisher’s reach and revenue, making it hard for users and publishers to feel confident and in control of their online presence.

What alternatives exist? Enter the Fediverse, a decentralized network of interconnected social media platforms that gives users autonomy.

Introduction to the Fediverse for publishers

The Fediverse is a collection of interconnected social platforms communicating through a shared protocol called ActivityPub. This protocol allows users to interact seamlessly across different platforms. Imagine the freedom of liking, commenting on, and sharing content from your Mastodon account to someone’s Pixelfed post or a Lemmy discussion. The interoperability of the Fediverse opens up a new world where publishers are not locked into a single platform’s ecosystem.

This shift represents a path for publishers to regain data sovereignty, engage with audiences directly, and reduce reliance on monolithic platforms whose opaque algorithms can significantly impact visibility and business outcomes. As ActivityPub adoption grows, so does the potential audience: the Fediverse is quickly evolving into an open and inclusive digital ecosystem connecting users, communities, and content creators worldwide.

Over the past few years, the Fediverse has steadily grown in popularity. By December 2024, the Fediverse’s active user base reached approximately 1,000,000 monthly active users across various interconnected platforms. This growth is fueled by widespread dissatisfaction with the content moderation policies, data practices, and general corporate control in traditional social media. In addition, as major platforms such as Meta’s Threads seek to integrate with or explore ActivityPub, public awareness of federated social networks is rising.

Many types of social media based on the ActivityPub protocol can all interact with each other. A few of the most popular ones include:

• Microblogging: Mastodon (similar to Twitter/X)
• Video hosting: Peertube (similar to YouTube)
• Image hosting: Pixelfed (similar to Instagram)
• Link aggregator: Lemmy (similar to Reddit)

Understanding the appeal of the Fediverse

Decentralisation: No single company controls the entire network. ActivityPub-based platforms run on independently operated servers, each governed by its own administrators and community norms. This decentralisation reduces dependency on large corporations and provides more freedom and flexibility in content creation and distribution.

Gaining control: For publishers, the Fediverse offers the chance to break free from algorithmic curation that can suddenly deprioritise certain types of content. Instead, engagement and visibility are shaped by more transparent community interactions. Publishers can directly interact with readers meaningfully and build audiences that value authenticity and thoughtful discourse.

Interoperability: Because ActivityPub enables different communication platforms, publishers can reach multiple communities from a single “home” platform. Content posted on a Mastodon instance can be discovered and discussed on Lemmy, shared on Pixelfed, or even commented on by someone who uses a different server.

Freedom from platform limits: Participation in the Fediverse means you are not constrained by one platform’s policies, features, or monetization models. Publishers can choose where to host their accounts, set moderation standards, and build communities that reflect their editorial mission and values.

Community-oriented: Federation encourages a sense of community and mutual respect. This environment fosters loyal, engaged audiences who value transparency and open dialogue. Publishers can cultivate deeper connections with their readers, creating a more meaningful and sustained form of audience engagement.

Bluesky: A different vision of decentralization

While ActivityPub primarily powers the Fediverse, but it is not the only decentralized social media ecosystem. One of the most notable newcomers is Bluesky, a platform initiated by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey and built on the Authenticated Transfer Protocol (ATProto).

Differences between ATProto and ActivityPub:

1. Philosophical foundations:
   • ActivityPub: Emphasizes federated communication between independent servers. It’s a W3C standard focusing on interoperability, decentralization, and compatibility with a wide range of platform types.
   • ATProto: Designed to create an ecosystem of portable identities, user-driven moderation, and open algorithmic choice. Its focus is on user sovereignty, data portability, and making it easy to move one’s account and social graph between different services.
2. Technical architecture:
   • ActivityPub: Primarily a server-to-server protocol enabling federation between different platforms. It defines how servers should publish, share, and subscribe to content, enabling a network of interconnected communities.
   • ATProto: Structures data around “repositories” controlled by each user, where their posts and social graph reside. Servers help with indexing and discovery, but the user’s data is portable, and the protocol emphasizes future interoperability with different services and algorithms.
3. Ecosystem and adoption:
   • ActivityPub: Widely adopted in the Fediverse, powering platforms like Mastodon, PixelFed, PeerTube, and others. It currently benefits from an established user base and ecosystem.
   • ATProto: Early in its growth but has generated significant interest. Its emphasis on portability, domain-based identities, and open algorithmic frameworks offers a fresh perspective on how decentralized social media might evolve.
4. Interoperability today and in the future:
   • ActivityPub: Already supports a rich variety of platforms and use cases, with users able to follow, comment, and share content across services.
   • ATProto: Still building out interoperability features. While currently not ActivityPub compatible, there’s an ongoing discussion in the community about bridging these protocols. Over time, users may see more cross-protocol integrations that bring the broader decentralised ecosystems closer together.

Understanding Bluesky and ATProto is essential for publishers. While the Fediverse (ActivityPub) ecosystem is already robust, ATProto and Bluesky provide a glimpse into emerging models of decentralized social networking. By monitoring both ecosystems, publishers can assess where their audiences are moving and how best to maintain a presence across different protocols.

Case studies: BBC, Flipboard, and Meta

As the Fediverse continues to evolve, with platforms like Mastodon leading the charge and new entrants like Meta’s Threads planning to join the ecosystem, the opportunity for news publishers to leverage this decentralized network becomes increasingly tangible. By embracing the Fediverse, publishers can diversify their social media presence and contribute to the growth of an open, interoperable digital public square.

Flipboard, a news aggregation platform, added over 1,000 of its social magazines to the Fediverse, marking a significant pivot towards decentralization in social media. This move reflects a shift from relying on standalone platforms like X to embracing a more open web ecosystem, fostering new opportunities for content curation and audience engagement within the decentralized web.

The BBC’s exploration of Mastodon by creating an exclusive server for its content further showcases traditional media’s interest in the Fediverse. This initiative diversifies the BBC’s digital footprint and experiments with new forms of audience interaction, free from the constraints of mainstream social media platforms. The BBC’s foray into Mastodon underscores the potential for news organizations to leverage the Fediverse for broader content distribution and community engagement, setting a precedent for other publishers to consider similar strategies.

Threads, introduced by Meta, represents a mainstream platform’s attempt to integrate with the Fediverse. This move highlights the growing appeal of decentralized social networks among tech giants and signals a potential shift in how social media ecosystems operate. Threads’ integration with ActivityPub aims to facilitate cross-platform interactions, allowing users to engage with content and communities across different Fediverse services. The impact of such integrations on the Fediverse ecosystem includes the potential for increased user adoption but also raises questions about maintaining the decentralized ethos in the face of involvement from large tech companies.

Strategies for publishers in the Fediverse

Entering the Fediverse presents a unique opportunity for publishers to expand their digital footprint in a decentralized social media ecosystem. Here are practical strategies for publishers considering this move:

Choose the right platform: The Fediverse comprises various platforms, each catering to different content types, such as Mastodon for microblogging, PixelFed for image sharing, and PeerTube for video content. Publishers should select platforms that align with their content strategy and audience preferences. For instance, a photography magazine might find a home on PixelFed, whereas a news outlet may prefer the text-based environment of Mastodon.

Build a following: Success in the Fediverse hinges on community engagement. Publishers can start by importing their existing audience but should also engage with the native Fediverse community. This involves participating in relevant discussions, using hashtags, and being active in different instances. Publishers can also collaborate with existing Fediverse influencers to tap into their follower base.

Engage with the community: The Fediverse culture values transparency, respect, and mutual support. Publishers should adopt these values in their interactions, fostering a sense of community. Regularly posting engaging content, responding to comments, and participating in community events or hashtags can help build a loyal following.

Leverage unique features: The Fediverse offers content federation across platforms and user-controlled algorithms, which can be leveraged for broader content distribution and personalized audience engagement. Publishers can explore these features to enhance visibility and engagement, ensuring their content reaches the right audience without the limitations of centralized platform algorithms.

Challenges and considerations

While the Fediverse offers numerous opportunities, publishers should also be aware of potential challenges:

Limited user base: The number of active users across the Fediverse in December 2024 is about 1,000,000, which is only a tiny fraction of users active on major social media platforms. However, this number could grow rapidly should major social media platforms like Threads and BlueSky joining the ActivityPub protocol.

Technical integration: Joining the Fediverse may require technical adjustments, especially for publishers with existing digital platforms. This includes setting up their instances or integrating with ActivityPub protocols. Technical resources or partnerships may be necessary to navigate this transition smoothly.

Content moderation: The decentralized nature of the Fediverse makes content moderation a shared responsibility. Publishers must establish clear community guidelines and moderation policies to foster a safe and respectful environment. Engaging with the broader Fediverse community to understand common moderation practices can also be beneficial.

Navigating a decentralized social web: The Fediverse’s decentralized structure means publishers must adapt to a landscape without a single governing body. This includes understanding different community norms across instances and respecting the autonomy of each platform. Open dialogue and active participation in Fediverse networks can help publishers navigate this complexity.

Maintaining open dialogue: Building relationships with the Fediverse community requires openness and transparency. Publishers should be prepared to engage in constructive conversations about their content, platform choices, and community interactions. Respecting the Fediverse’s norms and values is crucial for long-term success and acceptance within the community.

For publishers willing to navigate these challenges, the Fediverse represents a frontier of opportunity for community-driven content distribution and engagement.

Conclusion

The Fediverse, powered by ActivityPub, represents a significant shift in online social media. It offers publishers autonomy, data sovereignty, and the ability to build genuine relationships with audiences freed from centralized algorithms and opaque corporate policies. As more platforms—from Flipboard to Meta’s Threads—embrace the Fediverse, the potential for growth and engagement becomes more tangible.

At the same time, emerging projects like Bluesky and the ATProto protocol demonstrate that there’s more than one path toward decentralization. Publishers who monitor these evolving ecosystems will be best positioned to meet their audiences wherever they choose to congregate online.

Key takeaways:

• Fediverse freedom: Publishers can escape the constraints of big tech platforms and cultivate communities that value open dialogue and user autonomy.
• Protocol power: ActivityPub’s interoperability drives broader reach, while ATProto’s user-centric approach offers a different vision of decentralized identity and portability.
• Evolving opportunities: With more platforms joining the ecosystem, including mainstream giants exploring decentralization, the Fediverse’s user base and influence are poised to expand rapidly.
• Challenges and adaptation: Navigating technical integrations, moderation challenges, and multiple evolving protocols is complex—but the rewards of autonomy, engagement, and authenticity are well worth the effort.

By embracing the Fediverse and keeping a close watch on emerging protocols like ATProto, publishers can help shape the future of social media. They can build loyal audiences, maintain editorial independence, and contribute to an open, community-driven digital public square.