Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and the new Chief “Twit”, has said that Twitter will charge $8 a month for its Blue service, which includes its sought-after “verified” badge, adding that he seeks to boost subscriptions and make the social media network less reliant on ads.
“Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullshit. Power to the people! Blue for $8/month,” Musk said in a tweet, adding that the price will be adjusted by “country proportionate to purchasing power parity.”
Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullshit.
Power to the people! Blue for $8/month.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 1, 2022
A blue check mark next to a person’s user name on the social media platform means Twitter has confirmed that the account belongs to the person or company claiming it. Twitter is currently free for most users.
Billionaire Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion last week.
Elon Musk ready to buy Twitter, again
Since the takeover, he has moved quickly to put his stamp on the company, firing its previous chief and other top officials.
Twitter’s advertising chief, Sarah Personette, tweeted on Tuesday that she had resigned from her post last week, adding further uncertainty for advertisers.
Musk on Tuesday said subscribers with blue check marks would get priority in replies, mentions, and search and would be able to post longer videos and audios. They would see half as many ads.
He also offered subscribers a paywall bypass from “publishers willing to work with us.”
Musk’s comments follow media reports that he was looking at the process of profile verification and how the blue check marks were given. Twitter used to give these to noteworthy profiles based on its own criteria. – Agencies
