- X, formerly known as Twitter, will soon charge new users for liking, posting, and replying to tweets.
- The policy is already active in New Zealand and the Philippines and is aimed at reducing spam and improving user experience.
- Elon Musk suggests that the new policy will help combat spam bots and fake accounts.
Elon Musk announced that new users on X might incur charges for posting content on the social media platform. The new users will have to pay a “small” fee for liking, posting, replying and even bookmarking posts on X now.
An X account noted that the website’s textual content has been revised to indicate that new users are required to pay a nominal yearly charge to gain access to the social network. Responding to a user query on the platform, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX explained that implementing “a small fee for new user write access” is necessary to combat the persistent threat of bots.
Unfortunately, a small fee for new user write access is the only way to curb the relentless onslaught of bots.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 15, 2024
Current AI (and troll farms) can pass “are you a bot” with ease.
“The onslaught of fake accounts also uses up the available namespace, so many good handles are taken as a result,” added Musk while responding to a tweet made by the X Daily News. As per the page, the policy was previously active in New Zealand and the Philippines. It further reveals that the policy was initially being tested to help reduce spam and improve the experience for users overall.
Also Read: Google to Bring Changes in Incognito Mode After The Privacy Lawsuit Settlement
While these new charges have been introduced, X users can still continue to follow accounts for free. Musk clarified that after a probationary period of three months, users would regain free write access. This announcement follows the platform’s decision last October to charge new unverified users in New Zealand and the Philippines a fee of $1 per year.
Why The Charges?
Recently, X initiated a massive purge of spam accounts, resulting in some users losing followers. The platform has been grappling with an influx of spam and porn bots in recent months, prompting Musk to initiate the purge.
Musk sure wants to combat spam bots by making X chargeable but he did not reveal how he plans to go about it. He is also yet to confirm how it will prevent fake accounts and automated bots because those who send spam content might just pay the ‘small fee’ or make many accounts and wait until they can post messages.
Elon Musk has been vocal about his concerns regarding spam and bot accounts on Twitter, emphasizing the need for transparency and accuracy in user metrics. He believes that Twitter’s advertising-driven model contributes to the prevalence of these inauthentic accounts. Musk has suggested that X’s reported user numbers could be inflated due to bots, which would mislead advertisers and investors.
While this move helps with boosting the security of the app, normal users might not want to use the social network X because they have to do more to sign up, and also because they can use other social networks without paying anything. How do you feel about this move? Let us know in the comments below!
