Twitter CEO Elon Musk has now revealed that Twitter will remove all legacy blue checks in the coming months if users do not pay for them.
In the past, Musk has criticized the company’s verification policy, calling it a “lords and peasants system.” With the relaunch of Twitter Blue, users can expect to see changes to the verification process.
Musk was responding to a screenshot of a “Verified Account” tab which pops up when users click the blue checkmark next to an account’s name. The tab says: “This is a legacy verified account. It may or may not be notable.”
Prior to Musk acquiring Twitter in October, the company offered free blue ticks to celebrities, government officials, journalists, and other influential Twitter users. However, users should expect this to change with the relaunch of Twitter Blue.
This follows a statement the new CEO made last month that “Far too many corrupt legacy Blue “verification” checkmarks exist.” Musk hinted that the company will remove legacy Blue in the coming months. “There will be a secondary tag below the name for someone who is a public figure, which is already the case for politicians,” says Musk.
The CEO has claimed that the new Twitter Blue membership, which will charge for verification, will “kill the bots” since a verified paid account will be suspended for spam or scam activity. According to Musk, Twitter Blue will go for $8 per month for those who pay through the website and $11 per month for those who pay through the app on an iPhone.
The launch of Twitter’s Blue service has not gone smoothly for the CEO. After its November debut, Blue was taken down because of an increase in impersonations on the platform. Last month, Blue was put on hold for the second time while Musk attempted to find a way around the 30% fee that Apple’s App Store gets from the majority of in-app purchases.
Overall, Twitter users can expect changes to the verification process in the coming months with the removal of legacy blue checks and the introduction of the paid Twitter Blue service. This new service will aim to “kill the bots” and improve the quality of accounts on the platform.
