Twitter to attempt re-launch of controversial subscription service

Twitter will re-launch its subscriber program, Twitter Blue, on Monday, dusting off its controversial choice to allow users to pay for verification.
In a tweet, the company said subscribers will be able to once again purchase Twitter Blue for $8 per month. However, in the midst of Twitter CEO Elon Musk's ongoing feud with Apple, the company announced that iOS users will have to shell out a bit more — $11 per month.
According to the company, Twitter Blue subscribers will get access to a number of perks, including the ability to upload videos in 1080p and fewer ads. Subscribers will also have the ability to edit their tweets, something normal users, as of now, cannot do.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Musk's version of Twitter Blue was immediately controversial upon its initial rollout because it allows practically any account to receive a "verified" blue checkmark. Prior to Musk's takeover of Twitter, verification was reserved for notable figures and official accounts in government, journalism, celebrities, and companies. However, The Associated Press noted that as soon as Twitter Blue was initially started in October, the social media platform was inundated with imposter accounts and bots posing as legitimate sources.
This included numerous false accounts pretending to be Musk himself.
Amid the ongoing controversies and issues surrounding the subscription service, Musk made the decision to halt Twitter Blue in November.
It appears, though, that Twitter Blue is now prepared to begin anew, and there may be other colors on the horizon, as Twitter said it will begin giving gold checkmarks to businesses and grey checkmarks to governments.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.
-
7 charged in LA for 'largest jewelry heist in US history'
Speed Read The purported thieves stole an estimated $100 million worth of items
-
ICE arrests NYC comptroller at courthouse
Speed Read Brad Lander was held for about four hours before being released
-
Trump ramps up Iran threats, demands 'surrender'
Speed Read Trump met with his top aides in the Situation Room on Tuesday
-
Disney, Universal sue AI firm over 'plagiarism'
Speed Read The studios say that Midjourney copied characters from their most famous franchises
-
What Elon Musk's Grok AI controversy reveals about chatbots
In the Spotlight The spread of misinformation is a reminder of how imperfect chatbots really are
-
Elon Musk's SpaceX has created a new city in Texas
Under The Radar Starbase is home to SpaceX's rocket launch site
-
Amazon launches 1st Kuiper internet satellites
Speed Read The battle of billionaires continues in space
-
Test flight of orbital rocket from Europe explodes
Speed Read Isar Aerospace conducted the first test flight of the Spectrum orbital rocket, which crashed after takeoff
-
Musk vs. Altman: The fight over OpenAI
Feature Elon Musk has launched a $97.4 billion takeover bid for OpenAI
-
Apple pledges $500B in US spending over 4 years
Speed Read This is a win for Trump, who has pushed to move manufacturing back to the US
-
Microsoft unveils quantum computing breakthrough
Speed Read Researchers say this advance could lead to faster and more powerful computers