The new owner of Twitter, Elon Musk, announced his first project as the owner of the popular media site, a change to how people might receive their blue checkmark.
“The whole verification process is being revamped right now,” Musk tweeted Sunday night.
The SpaceX and Tesla Motors CEO is looking to revamp “Twitter Blue,” a $4.99-a-month subscription plan, into a $19.99-a-month plan that verifies users with the famous blue checkmark.
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According to reports, current verified users would have 90 days to sign up for the subscription or lose their blue-check status.
Developers at Twitter have been given the deadline of November 7 to launch this feature with the penalty of being fired.
Many verified users have expressed their frustrations with Musk over this new news:
And if he thinks anyone will pay $240 a year for a blue check mark, he doesn’t know how much money journalists actually make.
— Scott Nover (@ScottNover) October 31, 2022
My blue check mark was fun while it lasted. I will not pay for it. Twitter should be paying me for making this place interesting. My tip jar has cobwebs. There are more Nazis now. WTF has Elon done to make it worth even a penny invested?
— Mr. Newberger (@jeremynewberger) October 31, 2022
$20 a month to keep my blue check? Fuck that, they should pay me. If that gets instituted, I’m gone like Enron.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) October 31, 2022
But some celebrated:
Elon is planning to tax the blue check mafia for using Twitter. Amazing https://t.co/Uc56NhE4cr
— Jack Posobiec 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) October 31, 2022
I don’t get the outrage over the blue checkmark. In fact, reducing it to a paid feature is great because after that it becomes abundantly clear why someone is verified, eliminating the perceived legitimacy of verification, which is in itself a huge engine of misinformation.
— Noam Blum (@neontaster) October 31, 2022
Existing blue checks will lose their checkmark in 90 days if they don’t subscribe to the new Twitter Blue after it launches: Verge
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) October 31, 2022
Brilliant