Twitter holds off on the launch of the paid verification system until the US midterm elections
A revamp for the verification system is one of the primary changes proposed by new Twitter owner Elon Musk. He wanted to offer the checkmark to everyone who pays for it, rather than only celebrities and other prominent personalities and accounts with a decent fan following getting it after proving their identity. In just about a week after taking control of the social network, Musk announced the updated Twitter Blue service. Priced at $8 a month (up from $5), it brings the checkmark and other exciting features not available to free users. Twitter updated its iOS app over the weekend to prepare for this change. However, it has decided to hold off on the rollout of the new verification system for a couple of days to avoid confusion ahead of tomorrow’s elections. Employees reportedly raised concerns that anyone can pay for the checkmark and impersonate president Joe Biden, other politicians, news publications, or other prominent personalities and spread misinformation. According to The New York Times, an employee recently labeled this move as a “risky change” as it has the potential of “causing election interference.” Shortly after their message on the internal Slack channel, a Twitter manager announced the delay. “We’ve made the decision to move the launch of this release to Nov. 9, after the election,” the manager wrote. It was likely a decision of Elon Musk as he is the CEO and sole director of Twitter. The multi-billionaire seems to have echoed these concerns and sided with Twitter employees to push back the new system. Of course, it’s a delay of just two days. So Musk will soon have the company shaping up the way he visions it to be. He also has several other changes planned for the social network.
Twitter Blue will offer more perks
The verification checkmark is just one perk of the Twitter Blue subscription. Twitter’s official note mentions 50 percent lesser ads which will also be twice as relevant. Subscribers will be able to post longer videos. Their content will also get priority in replies, mentions, and searches. This is on top of the existing perks such as a customizable navigation bar, custom app icons, bookmarks, undo tweets and more.
