If you were signing onto Facebook to send a friend a new LOLcat magnet or friendship bracelet, you'd better click fast — Facebook is taking physical gifts off the table and moving entirely to digitally-redeemable gifts and cards.
Perhaps the hassle of keeping track of stock, promotions and new products was a bit too much for the social network, especially when "real" gifts were only 20 percent of purchases. Facebook started the gifts program last November. The company gave NBC News the following statement Friday about the revamped gifts section:
Today we're beginning to roll out a new design for Facebook Gifts focused on gift cards. Since launching Gifts in December last year, roughly 80% of gifts have been gift cards. So, we're now adding more digital codes and making the Facebook Card redeemable at more merchants. As a part of this shift in focus to Facebook Card and digital codes, we’re also phasing out physical gifts.
Birthdays today still show physical gifts for sale, because the rollout is only hitting 10 percent of the U.S. today — but everyone should see the updated gift page by next week.
Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBC News Digital. His personal website is coldewey.cc.