Ever since billionaire and investor Elon Musk took over Twitter Inc last week, there have been constant updates and amendments on the social media platform. In a new change reported by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, it was said that Twitter will not allow Blue service subscribers to avail the facility of viewing ad- free articles.
In June 2021, Twitter Blue was launched as the social media giant’s first ever subscription service that offered access to its premium features as well as a choice to edit one’s tweets. The subscription even allowed users to view articles from specific publishers without ads. Last month, an edit button was also made available to paid subscribers in the United States.
As per recent advancements, Twitter is further planning to amend its Blue subscription plan which costs $4.99 a month, as of now. It also includes verification of the user as part of this paid service, according to reports published by media.
Source: BBC News
In response to author Stephen King’s query over monetisation of verified accounts on Twitter, Musk asked if $8 was an amount he would pay for being a verified user. Musk later maintained that charging a small amount is the only way to fight bots and trolls, and to make Twitter a safe ecosystem for its users. He also said that Twitter can’t solely rely on advertising for its pay. Musk argued that the plan will end Twitter’s “current lords & peasants system” paving a path for new revenue stream.
Musk tweeted, “Power to the people! Blue for $8/ month.”
Pricing of the new plan will be fixed by country “proportionate to purchasing power parity”, said Musk in the replies to his original tweet.
The plan will also bring forth expanded video abilities, lesser advertisements and the probability for users to get a “paywall bypass for publishers willing to work” with Twitter.
Twitter has not responded to requests for comment by Reuters.
