Decentralized Networks Growth Analysis: Instance Dynamics on Mastodon

Abstract

Federated social networks have become an appealing choice as alternatives to mainstream centralized platforms. In the current global context, where the user’s activity on various social networks is monitored, influenced and manipulated, alternative platforms that offer the possibility of owning and controlling one’s own data are of great importance. Mastodon stands out among decentralized alternatives in the fediverse. In this study, we conduct a time-based dynamics analysis of Mastodon instances within a specific period. Our results show a growth pattern of instances in terms of accounts in certain periods of time, and due to social events, reinforcing our assumption of it being already trusted as a decentralized platform. Our work holds significance in the wider context of studying and understanding the adoption and evolution of decentralized platforms as ethical alternatives to Big Tech platforms.