Elon Musk introduces $8 fee for Twitter
Billionaire and Twitter boss Elon Musk has said Twitter will charge $8 monthly to Twitter users who want a blue tick by their name indicating a verified account.
As part of changes to the site, the new boss said it was “essential to defeat spam/scam”.
Musk took over Twitter after months of back and forth – buying the social media platform for $44bn.
A blue tick next to a username – normally for celebrities – is currently free. The move could make it harder to identify reliable sources, according to critics.
Paid users would have priority in replies and searches and half as many advertisements.
“Power to the people! Blue for $8/month,” the billionaire said on Twitter, criticising the old method of blue tick verification as a “lords and peasants system”.
But introducing a low fee for blue ticks could make it harder to spot disinformation.
The blue tick had been reserved for high-profile figures such as celebrities, politicians and journalists.
Musk will be doing all he can to turn Twitter around – the business has not posted a profit in years.
