Billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk has said that the legacy blue checkmarks would be removed from Twitter accounts verified under the company’s previous regime, with an April 20 deadline set for the enforcement.
The blue checkmark — previously free for verified accounts of politicians, famous personalities, journalists and other public figures — is now open to anyone prepared to pay.
The move is aimed at boosting the company’s subscription revenue, according to Musk.
Late last month, Twitter said it would be winding down its legacy checkmarks by April 1, and provided links for those who want to keep them.
Musk cited the need for revenue and tackling bots as the driving force behind Twitter’s shift to paid verification. When Stephen King voiced his opposition to paying for a blue checkmark, Musk replied with a quip: “We need to pay the bills somehow!”
Musk had in November last year announced that the site will charge $8 per month to verify users’ accounts.
“Power to the people! Blue for $8/month,” the billionaire entrepreneur had tweeted in reference to the platform’s famous blue checkmark, saying the new plan would upend the “current lords & peasants system” and create a new revenue stream for the site.
Ten days later, Twitter paused its announced $8 blue check subscription service as fake accounts mushroomed.
Twitter relaunched its subscription service, Twitter Blue, in December 2022, which included an option for users to purchase a verified blue checkmark. On March 24, the company extended this service worldwide.
