Social Media

Twitter Might Get Locked Behind a Paywall, According to Elon Musk

Elon Musk wants to combat bot accounts on Twitter by locking it behind a paywall.

I’ve chatted about all sorts of Twitter and Elon Musk stuff in my previous stories, and you can find those linked at the end of this post.

But right now, I wanna dive into something juicy: Elon Musk’s thinking about making Twitter a pay-to-play gig to tackle those pesky bot accounts. Let’s get into it!

So, guess what? Elon Musk dropped a bombshell on Twitter, and it’s got a lot of people scratching their heads. According to a recent BBC report, Musk is thinking about slapping a paywall on Twitter.

Yeah, you heard that right. Paying for Twitter. It all came out during a live stream chat with the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. So, what’s the deal? Musk spilled the beans, saying:

“We’re moving to having a small monthly payment for use of the system.”

But what’s the reason behind this crazy idea? Well, he thinks that making folks pay even a few bucks will scare the bots away. Yep, those pesky bots that have been plaguing Twitter like an infestation.

But hold on a second, because wasn’t Twitter already trying to battle these bots with something called X Premium, which used to be called Twitter Blue?

You can read about it in X’s help section, which, as of the time I’m writing this, still mentions Twitter and “Tweets.” Musk even made it his mission to “defeat the spam bots or die trying” back in April 2022.

But here’s where things get interesting. X Premium basically replaced the old verification system, making it impossible to tell important figures apart from someone who just coughed up eight bucks.

Now, this has created a wild situation where spammers can pay that fee to get their comments boosted and even weaponized by chaos-loving users to mess with pharmaceutical companies’ stocks.

I don’t know about you, but when I scroll through Twitter these days, it’s like I’m trudging through a swamp of incendiary comments and spam before I can even find a decent discussion.

And Musk’s solution? He believes that a lower fee would scare off the bots that are already using the pricier X Premium. He says:

“We’re actually going to come up with a lower tier pricing. So we just want it to be just a small amount of money […] This is a longer discussion, but in my view, this is actually the only defence against vast armies of bots.”

But here’s the kicker: there’s some confusion about what Musk actually meant. Some folks are trying to argue that suggesting a lower-tier subscription doesn’t mean it’s required to use the platform. Seriously? That doesn’t add up to me.

If there’s a cheaper option for boosting content, it would probably make the spam situation worse. To make it work as intended, the free version of Twitter would have to be practically unusable, or else there’d be no reason for bots to cough up any cash.

It’s not the first time Musk has dropped a policy change grenade in the middle of his Twitter town square. And if he changes his mind on this one, it won’t be the first time he’s done a U-turn.

Remember that rate limit thing that came and went? Yeah, Twitter’s been through a lot of changes, and the rebranding still hasn’t gone site-wide.

Final Words

In spite of these hastily implemented policy changes, not a single one seems to have put a dent in the spam problem.

In fact, some argue that X Premium has made it worse. Musk’s plan seems to hinge on the idea that spammy companies won’t want to spend money to make money, but that idea just hasn’t panned out.

So, whether you love it or hate it, it looks like the Twitter saga is far from over.

If you enjoy my posts and would like to stay updated on the latest gaming-related news, technology advancements, design trends, and social media insights, I invite you to follow my profile.

I will continue to share my thoughts and insights on a wide range of topics in the world of entertainment and technology.

With that being said, thank you for reading my post, and have a good one.

Here are my previous collections.

Here’s What I Wrote in July 2023.

Here’s What I Wrote in June 2023

Here’s What I Wrote in May 2023

Here’s What I Wrote in April 2023

Here’s What I Wrote in March 2023

I provided an update on my last month.

Here are a few of my previous stories relating to Twitter and Elon Musk I believe you will enjoy:

References

Elon Musk: Social media platform X, formerly Twitter, could go behind paywall.

Elon Musk potentially eyes locking Twitter behind a paywall to combat ‘vast armies of bots.’

Have you tried Cliqly yet?

About Me

I write articles in my field covering gaming, film-making, social media, and design. I am also a YouTuber. Thank you for subscribing to my account to get notifications when I post on Medium. I also created a new website to share my content for free and promote stories of writers contributing to my publications on Medium. I also have a Substack newsletter. Let’s connect on Twitter and LinkedIn.

I own two publications on Medium. One for video gamers and another for YouTubers and Podcasters. I also support Illumination Integrated Publications as a volunteer editor and participate in collaborative activities in the Slack Workspace. Writer applications for my publications can be sent via this weblink. Please add your Medium ID.

If you are new to Medium, you may join via my referral link. You may also consider being a Vocal+ member to monetize your content. I write for both platforms and repurpose my content to reach a larger audience. Here is more information about Vocal Media. I also enjoy email marketing using Cliqly.

This post includes referral links.