'$8 for all': Elon Musk on fees for blue-tick Twitter verification

'Power to the people', says social media platform about subscription for verified status

Twitter Blue, a new feature that for $8 allows users of the social media platform get verified status, will come to India within a month. The cost will be alike for celebrities and other users already having verified status.

“Twitter needs to become by far the most accurate source of information about the world. That’s our mission,” said Twitter’s chief executive officer (CEO) Elon Musk in a post on Monday. A user replied asking if the platform will offer the subscription for free to those providing the most accurate information. The user suggested that a tweet’s accuracy could be checked with the help of Artificial Intelligence, eliminating bias.

Musk said in his reply: “$8 for all.”

The subscription to get a blue tick for $7.99 was launched on Saturday for iOS users in Canada, the US, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.

Musk also announced “a secondary tag below the name for someone who is a public figure, which is already the case for politicians.” He announced it while addressing the worries of some Twitter users about their ‘blue tick’ status.

Twitter said, "Blue checkmark: Power to the people. Your account will get a blue checkmark, just like the celebrities, companies, and politicians you already follow".

Musk has been talking about his plans to turn Twitter into a profitable company as soon as possible. The pay-for-verification option is a part of the same plan. He has previously said that Twitter was making a loss of $4 million every day. He has also argued that the new feature would help in reducing bots, spam, and scam accounts on Twitter.

Twitter will also offer a list of features that a user will get along with a blue tick subscription. It includes fewer ads, the ability to post long videos and to get priority ranking for quality content.

American technology news website The Verge has reported that Musk is considering removing blue ticks of users who already have verified accounts if they do not pay for the new service.