LONDON: Elon Musk has charged the latest users in New Zealand and the Philippines $1 a year to access key features as part of a new trial. They include the ability to tweet, retweet, like posts, and reply to posts.
Those who opt out of the subscription fee can only read posts, watch videos, and follow accounts.
The social media platform points to “reduce spam, manipulation of our platform, and bot activity.”
Latest accounts will also be required to verify their cell number, though Musk has said it should still be free to create “read-only” reports, which don’t have key features. The previous month, the boss of X, Tesla, and SpaceX suggested that all X users may have to pay for access.
Since Musk bought Twitter for $44bn the previous year, it has seen a continuous revenue decline.
While the company has a clear financial interest in charging users, the controversial billionaire has said that getting people to pay for the service is aimed at tackling bots.
Lastly, he said a bot costs “a fraction of a penny” to make. But if somebody even has to pay a few dollars or some minor amount, the effective price to bots is very high.
Paid subscribers of an enhanced service, X Premium, now pay for more features like longer posts and increased visibility on the platform. X Premium recently costs $8 a month in the United States. The cost differs depending on which country a subscriber resides in, while other users can still use X for free.
One risk of putting X behind a paywall is that the platform may lose many users. That, in turn, could drive down advertising revenue, which currently accounts for most of the company’s income.
In recent weeks, the European Union has investigated the company for the possible spread of terrorist and violent content and hate speech after Hamas attacks Israel. Australia’s internet safety watchdog has also fined it for failing to cooperate with a probe into anti-child abuse practices.
