Elon Musk is a busy man: aside from looking to send people into space, he’s also looking to create a more sustainable future with electric vehicles. They are the kind of companies that demand careful consideration and a lot of work and yet, somehow, the man still finds time to purchase Twitter, with the hope of revamping the social media platform that has continued to find itself caught up in the socio-political hellscape that is modern times.
Many have been sceptical about Musk’s takeover, lamenting his newfound ownership and bracing themselves for a set of changes that could just bring about Twitter’s demise. Now, Musk is already offering an indication of just what direction he’s looking to take the platform as he’s revealed that he’s considering charging Twitter users $20 a month, or $240 a year in order for them to boast that long-coveted verified blue tick of approval.
The whole verification process is being revamped right now
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 30, 2022
According to the tech newsletter Platformer, the Tesla chief executive is planning changes to Twitter’s Blue subscription service, which would also include raising the $4.99 a month fee to $19.99. Twitter users who have a blue tick to their name, authenticating them as the original source – would then have 90 days to sign up to Blue or risk losing their check mark.
While Musk is yet to comment or elaborate on his plans, he has Tweeted that “the whole verification process is being revamped right now.”
In another post in which he conducted a Twitter poll, he asked his followers how much they would pay a month for a blue tick, with the options of $5, $10, $15 or “wouldn’t pay.” The poll was set up by tech investor Jason Calacanis, an associate of Musk’s who is part of a team the multibillionaire created to help run the business following the $44 billion takeover.
How much would you pay to be verified & get a blue check mark on Twitter?
— jason@calacanis.com (@Jason) October 31, 2022
As many would expect, most of respondents to the poll said they wouldn’t pay, except for a small minority who indicated otherwise. According to The Guardian, there are roughly 400,000 verified users on Twitter as of 2021. Though the blue tick was originally introduced in 2009 due to concerns from celebrities that they were being impersonated, it’s since morphed into something of its own beast, with many wanting it simply as a symbol of status and liveability, as opposed to one of proof of identification. For some users, the tick was withdrawn due to issues concerning their own posts. The program was indeed paused for a number of years before resuming in 2021.
Other ideas that seem to have sprung forth from Musk since the takeover include bringing back Vine, the highly popular video-sharing app that later came to be steamrolled by TikTok and Instagram Stories. It seems to suggest that Musk is wanting to compete against TikTok, creating a platform that’s even better. Still, it’s a tall order, particularly given that TikTok boasts over 1 billion users, while Twitter has just 230 million.
Bring back Vine?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 31, 2022
Though Musk has said he will keep content policies in place and maintain bans on restricted amounts until the social media platform undergoes a proper content moderation council, one of his key goals is to expand the platform to increase revenue. As The Washington Post reported, he was planning to lay off 25 per cent of the company’s 7,500 staff in a first round of job cuts. When asked by a Twitter user what the “most messed up” thing he perceived at the company was, Musk wrote back: “There seem to be 10 people ‘managing’ for every one person coding.’”
It seems clear that with Twitter in his power, Musk is certainly looking to shake things up and it will be nothing short of an interesting time ahead for those who use the social media platform.
