As of yesterday (Oct. 17), individuals in New Zealand and the Philippines who want to create new accounts on X must now sign up for a $1 annual subscription in order to post and interact with other users, according to the platform’s Support page.
So, what was the inspiration behind Elon Musk’s design for Tesla’s Cybertruck?
“This new test has been developed to strengthen our ongoing efforts to combat spam, platform manipulation, and bot activity, while still ensuring platform accessibility with a small fee. It is not intended to be a profit driver,” the company stated in a blog post published on Oct. 17, shortly after Fortune magazine first reported on the change. New users who choose not to subscribe will only have “read-only” access, allowing them to view posts, watch videos, and follow accounts. In order to take further actions such as posting, retweeting, quote tweeting, replying, or bookmarking, users must select one of three options: the $1 subscription fee, the X Premium plan (approximately $11 for iOS and Android users, $8 for web users) which grants access to tweet editing and undoing, or the Verified Organizations plan which costs $1,000 per month.
Musk’s perspective on combating bots: “Read for free, but $1/year to write. It’s the only way to fight bots without blocking real users. This won’t completely eliminate bots, but it will make manipulating the platform 1000 times harder,” Musk stated in an Oct. 17 post on X.
How will the $1 subscription on X deter bot activity? In a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu back in September, Musk suggested the idea of charging all users a small fee. Musk explained that it only costs “a fraction of a penny” to create a bot account, and increasing the account cost to “a few dollars or something” could potentially discourage bot operators, as reported by The Guardian. Musk further explained that if a bot creator wanted to make another bot, they would then need a new payment method. However, there is a downside to this approach as it could also create a barrier for real users. Even though the fee is minimal, it may alienate certain demographics such as young people or individuals without access to a bank account.
Is the $1 subscription really about bots? Some believe that charging individual users has less to do with combating bot activity on the platform (since some bots already pay for verification badges) and more to do with fulfilling Musk’s ambitions for an “everything app.” One user suggested that it could be a way for X to collect credit card information, which could potentially be used for future financial services or e-commerce offerings. Another user raised concerns about the safety of storing credit card information, referencing a recent report that flagged one of Musk’s other companies, Tesla, for data privacy concerns.
One other important point: X needs a “profit driver.” Formerly known as Twitter, X has been facing challenges in maintaining its user base and engagement. The platform is striving to make up for declining ad revenue, pay off its $13 billion debt, and cover any outstanding costs. However, CEO Linda Yaccarino remains optimistic about the future, stating in an interview last month that she expects X to turn profitable by 2024. Yaccarino highlighted an increase in ad revenue and the success of cost-cutting measures, including significant layoffs, as contributing factors.
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