X, formerly known as Twitter, has announced a new programme requiring new and unverified users to pay a $1 annual subscription fee to sign up.
According to X, the program is now being tested in New Zealand and the Philippines.
The test will allow new accounts to post and interact with other users.
“Starting today, we’re testing a new program (Not A Bot) in New Zealand and the Philippines. New, unverified accounts will be required to sign up for a $1 annual subscription to be able to post & interact with other posts. Within this test, existing users are not affected.
“This new test was developed to bolster our already successful efforts to reduce spam, manipulation of our platform and bot activity while balancing platform accessibility with the small fee amount. It is not a profit driver. And so far, subscription options have proven to be the main solution that works at scale.”
In a tweet, Elon Musk, X’s chairman, disclosed the reason for the annual subscription fee.
According to Musk, the charge will reduce spam and automated bot accounts.
“Correct, read for free, but $1/year to write. It’s the only way to fight bots without blocking real users. This won’t stop bots completely, but it will be 1000X harder to manipulate the platform.”
The subscription fee is no doubt lower than what he touted would be charged users shortly after he bought over the social media platform.
Last year, while trying to revamp the whole verification process, he considered charging users $20 (£17.30) a month or $240 a year for a blue tick on their account, this included raising the $4.99 a month fee to $19.99.
Users verified by the platform, that is those who carry a blue tick flagging them as an authentic source, would have 90 days to sign up to Blue or lose their check mark.
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