Elon Musk said Twitter will alter the procedure for obtaining the coveted “blue tick.” He said this while responding to rumors of Twitter’s proposed verification charge.
Days after assuming control of the social media juggernaut, Mr. Musk said the authentication procedure would be revised.
Blue tick which is currently free, legitimizes Twitter profiles.
Friday saw the completion of Mr. Musk’s $44 billion (£37.9 billion) acquisition, and he changed his Twitter handle to Chief Twit.
The billionaire frequently voiced worries about the verification process and the volume of spam and bot accounts he believed littered the site during the months of legal fighting before the acquisition.
Mr. Musk’s post from Sunday mentioned nothing else about what might change.
The Verge, a technology website, published internal communication to claim that Twitter now intends to charge users $19.99 per month to maintain their blue tick verification status.
It claims the idea includes adding verification as a feature to Twitter Blue and quadrupling the company’s membership service cost.
According to the article, verified users would forfeit their blue tick if they do not enroll within 90 days.
It also stated that the company would terminate staff who fail to implement the plan.
Twitter Blue has several premium capabilities, including the ability to undo a tweet. It was first introduced last summer.
It costs $4.99 a month and is currently an option.
Fear of a job cuts
In a related event, Mr. Musk has refuted a New York Times claim that he intends to fire Twitter employees before the start of next month to avoid paying out.
It comes after his takeover last week, which saw the departure of the company’s top executives, including the CEO, chairman, and finance head.
The New York Times revealed that Mr. Musk had directed massive job layoffs across Twitter’s personnel over the weekend.
The newspaper reported that Twitter would layoff staff before November 1. When employees ought to receive grants of business shares.
However, he stated: “This is incorrect,” in response to a Twitter user who inquired about the allegation.
What the platform will become under Mr. Musk’s ownership has been a conversation among Twitter users since the takeover.
If free speech regulations are softer, peddlers of fake news and hate speech will thrive.
Twitter will wear a new look
Mr. Musk stated last week that he did not want the platform to serve as a platform for hate and divisiveness. But, he wrote, “Twitter cannot devolve into a free-for-all hellscape where anything can be uttered without repercussions.”
Nevertheless, Mr. Musk tweeted a snapshot of a New York Times headline accusing him of tweeting a link to a website known for disseminating false news after refuting the New York Times’ claim on job layoffs.
A response to a tweet from former US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton that Elon Musk posted and later deleted was the subject of the New York Times headline.
A report that Paul Pelosi was attacked has been denied by Musk.
Additionally, Mr. Musk asked his followers if Vine’s short-video service should be returned.
Read Also: Twitter: What’s next after Elon Musk’s takeover?
Twitter acquired the platform for sharing looping videos of six seconds in 2012.
Before Twitter abandoned the social media platform, Vine had more than 200 million active users.
Mr. Musk’s past polls have asked people if they think Twitter should have an edit button and whether he should sell 10% of his interest in the electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla.
