After many tests and some confusion, the Twitter Blue was re-released this Monday (12). The plan — which gives access to exclusive features on the social network, such as the blue verification seal — is more expensive if the subscription is made on an iPhone or iPad: US$11 per month in the US, or R$59.90 in Brazil🇧🇷 Online, the price remains the same: $8.
Twitter Blue exists since 2021, when it launched at $2.99 per month. The signature gained particular attention when Elon Musk took over the company in November 2022.
The main novelty was the verification seal, the little blue one, next to the username. Previously, it was restricted to people working in government agencies, the entertainment industry and journalism, among other cases. Now, it’s available to anyone who pays.
This has already caused a lot of confusion, by the way. When the feature was released, still in the testing phase, many accounts used their new badge to impersonate famous people and companies.
Then it was a mess: Mario showing the middle finger on a page pretending to be Nintendo, a fake LeBron James announcing his departure from the Los Angeles Lakers and much more.
Musk threatened to ban anyone using the blue check in this way, and demanded that humorous accounts put in their names that were a parody.
Rules are a little stricter
Now, in the relaunch, new rules: you will need to register a phone number for verification. If the user changes the username, display name or profile picture, the badge disappears and only appears again after a review.
In addition, those who subscribe to Twitter Blue have tools such as editing tweets, posting videos in 1080p and using reading mode. New features, such as less advertising and priority in search results and responses, should be coming soon.
New verification stamps
With the blue badges available to all subscribers, the social network’s verification system will also change.
The “Official” indication, which had been adopted for old verified and media companies, is no longer on the scene. Now, companies will have a gold seal. “Governmental and multilateral” accounts will now receive a gray seal.
The difference between prices on the web and on iOS is part of the fight between Elon Musk, owner of the social network, and Apple.
Rumors have circulated that the iPhone maker could remove Twitter from its store if the moderation rules get too lax. Besides, she decreased purchase of advertising on the network🇧🇷
In November, Musk struck back, saying the company charges a “secret fee”referring to the 30% commission that the iPhone manufacturer earns on purchases in its app store.
In fact, the fee is not a secret: in 2008, when the store was launched, Apple announced that there would be such a commission. There is even a lot of debate around the topic, and companies like Spotify🇧🇷 epic games and telegram have already criticized the charge and ban on other payment methods.
The solution was to increase the price, as a way to “compensate” the commission and encourage direct subscription through the website.
In Brazil, Twitter Blue is not officially available: you can only subscribe using a VPN to bypass geoblocking.
Even so, its price on Apple’s App Store has appeared for some time. First, it was R$ 25.90, rising later for BRL 44.90🇧🇷 Now, the store displays the value of R$ 59.90 per month.
https://tecnoblog.net/noticias/2022/12/12/twitter-blue-que-da-selo-de-verificado-fica-mais-caro-r-60-por-mes/