“A Risky Change”
Twitter postpones launch of paid ticks
11/06/2022, 11:07 p.m
After taking over Twitter, billionaire Musk announces paid verification ticks. But now their introduction is being postponed, according to a media report. The cause is apparently concerns about the upcoming midterm elections in the United States.
According to a media report, Twitter wants to postpone the introduction of checkmarks for verification as part of a new $8 subscription. As the “New York Times” (NYT) reports that the US short message service wants to wait until after the US midterm elections on Tuesday. No comment was initially available on Twitter.
Twitter updated its app on Saturday, charging $8 a month to use the coveted tick on a verification badge. Up to now, the symbols with the tick, which guarantee the authenticity of the Twitter profile, have been assigned free of charge. A Twitter Blue subscription is now required for this in the future. However, subscribers should also enjoy other benefits, such as significantly less advertising.
The possible reason for the now postponed start: Users and employees had expressed the fear that the blue ticks, which apply to all subscribers, could cause confusion in the run-up to the election, the report says. Users could therefore easily create verified accounts, for example by impersonating US President Joe Biden or news agencies, and publish false information about election results. In an internal Slack channel, a Twitter employee reportedly asked why the social network was “making such a risky change before the election that has the potential to disrupt the election.”
Biggest intervention since Musk took over
The introduction of the paid checkmarks marks the first major overhaul of the social media platform by new owner Elon Musk. Twitter has been struggling with economic problems for a long time. Among other things, the short message service had made losses in the first two quarters of the year. Musk lamented a “massive drop in revenue” on Friday, blaming “activist groups” for putting pressure on advertisers. “They are trying to destroy freedom of speech in America.”
After a month-long tug-of-war, the eccentric billionaire has officially become the owner of the social media network, which cost him $44 billion, a few days ago. A week after Musk’s takeover, Twitter laid off around half of its 7,500 employees on Friday. Musk had already fired Twitter management immediately after the takeover.