X Unveils New Premium Subscription Tiers
Elon Musk has announced that his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, will introduce two new premium subscription tiers.
One of these tiers, as gathered by Excel Magazine International, will be a lower-cost option with all features but no reduction in ads, while the other will be more expensive and will provide an ad-free experience.
Elon Musk made the announcement in a post on X.
Recall, the platform began charging new users $1 in New Zealand and the Philippines to access it, but Elon Musk didn’t provide further details about the premium subscription plans.
Excel Magazine observes that users who choose not to subscribe will have limited access and can only perform “read-only” actions, such as reading posts, watching videos, and following accounts.
Although it is unclear if there will be any free options available on the platform.
Elon Musk has previously emphasized that charging for the service is his strategy to combat bots and fake accounts on X.
Since he took over the company in October last year, he has been working to encourage users to pay for an enhanced service, now called X Premium. Some users already pay $8 per month for the blue check subscription service, and the “Not A Bot” subscription method aims to reduce spam and bot activity.
The billionaire has also attempted to attract advertisers back to X by offering discounts.
However, his rapid changes, including mass layoffs and disbanding content moderation teams, led to some advertisers halting their ads on the platform. This, in turn, impacted the platform’s revenue, and Musk blamed activists for pressuring advertisers.
Oher tech companies, like Alphabet’s YouTube and Netflix, have also explored a mix of ad-supported and subscription plans. X shares some of its ad revenue with content creators, but it hasn’t been disclosed if content creators will be compensated in ad-free subscription models.
Despite Elon Musk’s efforts to generate revenue and address content moderation concerns on X, advertisers have not fully returned, citing concerns that their ads might appear next to inappropriate content.
Additionally, the European Commission recently initiated an investigation into X to assess its compliance with new tech rules regarding illegal and harmful content, particularly in the context of disinformation following events like Hamas’s attack on Israel.
