Twitter blue tick to cost $8, confirms Musk, to be adjusted by country
Twitter will charge $8 for its much sought-after Blue tick service, which ensures official status following verification of a user.
The company’s new boss Elon Musk confirmed the rate on Tuesday, in a bid to monetise the service 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”.
“To all complainers, please continue complaining, but it will cost $8,” he confirmed in a tweet on Tuesday.
To all complainers, please continue complaining, but it will cost $8
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 2, 2022
Those having blue tick would get priority in replies, mentions and search, and be able to post longer videos and audios, and would be shown half as many ads.
Musk has also offered subscribers a paywall bypass from “publishers willing to work with us”.
Twitter gives blue ticks to note-worthy profiles and people verified by it as authentic users.
Price adjusted by country proportionate to purchasing power parity
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 1, 2022
A few days back, Musk, who had recently completed acquisition of Twitter, suggested that blue tick users would have to pay $20 a month for the service.
However, this came in for strong criticism. Author Stephen King had denounced the idea, saying he would leave the social media platform.
“$20 a month to keep my blue check? F*** that, they should pay me. If that gets instituted, I’m gone like Enron,” King had said in a tweet.
Also read: Twitter blue tick fee: Stephen King miffed; Elon Musk ‘suggests’ lower rate
Over 80% Twitter users in a recent poll said they would not pay for the blue tick, while 10% who said they were willing to pay $5 a month.
Twitter has a subscription service called Twitter Blue, which was launched in June last year and offers access to features such as an option to edit tweets.
