© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Twitter Paid Subscription Re-Launch: Twitter has re-started sign ups for its Twitter Blue subscription service for web users. The iOS version will likely roll out later. It has also rolled out a new ‘gold’ coloured checkmark for some business accounts, instead of the traditional Blue tick that was accorded to official accounts. This gold checkmark is part of a new service it is testing called Twitter Blue for Business, where the gold tick is given instead of the traditional blue one.
Twitter owner Elon Musk also tweeted that he would remove all legacy blue checks in a few months and insists that “the way in which they were given out was corrupt and nonsensical.” The service is launching on the web only right now in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. Twitter plans to expand further in the coming days.
The ‘gold’ tick is already visible on several media and business accounts. The re-launch of Twitter Blue and this new gold tick comes after the fiasco with the original launch last month. When Twitter Blue first rolled out, it basically let anyone get a ‘blue tick’ . The end result was that many brands were impersonated on the platform with several fake accounts posting misinformation as well.
The new Twitter Blue subscription is rolling out for a price of $8 on the web. The rate will be higher on iOS ($11) because Twitter will have to pay 30 per cent fee to Apple. Musk had earlier tweeted against this ‘secret tax’ and also talked about how if Apple were to remove Twitter from the App Store, he would have build his own phone and operating system. This feud with Apple lasted for a short time, with Musk later posting that he had sorted out all differences with Cupertino after a meeting with CEO Tim Cook.
Twitter Blue new: What does it offer?
Twitter’s official account has posted details about the new subscription service. It notes that when a user subscribes their account will get access to subscriber-only features such as the ability to “edit tweets, 1080p video uploads, reader mode, and a blue checkmark.” However, this blue tick is now accorded only once your account has been reviewed. It also looks like Twitter is imposing more conditions on who can subscribe to the service. For instance, the company has said that “account must be at least 90 days old” and needs a confirmed phone number in order to get access to Twitter Blue.
Soon “subscribers with the blue checkmark will get priority ranking in search, mentions, and replies to help lower the visibility of scams, spam and bots,” notes the thread. Most importantly, “Twitter Blue subscribers will be unable to change their display and user names after receiving a blue checkmark.” Twitter says there is “a new process” coming “soon for any display and user name changes.”
Twitter Blue will not be an ‘ad-free’ experiences, though subscribers might see fewer ads in the future. Meanwhile, Twitter Blue for Business is a new service, which is being tested for corporate entities on the platform and “subscribers to this service receive a gold checkmark which designates the account as belonging to an official business on Twitter.”
In addition to this, Twitter might also add an official badge to some accounts on the platform. According to the blog post, “The Official profile label may be applied to government accounts (institutional accounts, elected or appointed officials, and multilateral organizations)*, certain political organizations such as political parties, commercial companies including business partners, major brands, media outlets and publishers, and some other public figures.”
Meanwhile, for “state-affiliated media and government accounts”, the platform might “display a unique label.”
