Twitter's blue tick fee: Revenue stream or can of worms for media-tech cos

The microblogging service is making a bid for pay revenues as advertising declines

Twitter is the world’s digital public square. More than 217 million users (2021) chat, argue, fight and abuse each other on what is also known as a hotbed of hate and misinformation. Elon Musk, who acquired Twitter for (a grossly overpriced) $44 billion last month, announced a series of changes. One of these is a charge of $8 a month for verifying accounts and giving them the blue tick certifying authenticity. Usually people with a big following, celebrities, organisations or brands apply for a blue tick through the Twitter website. The charge will vary based on a country and its