Newly branded to X, Twitter is reportedly demanding that brands spend at least $1,000 (R17,650) per month on ads to maintain their verified status.
According to reports from The Wall Street Journal, the company is introducing this approach in an attempt to increase its bottom line.
Elon Musk who is the X owner technology, mentioned that the $1,000 monthly price sets a “moderately high bar” in order to achieve the verified status.
In a response to a Tweet about the approach, Musk said: “Or they can just pay $1000/month for a verified organisation subscription with the ability to convey that organisational authority to affiliates. This more than pays for itself in organic reach,”
He went on to add that what the pricing would mean is that organisations must be of a “non-trivial” size to qualify. He said it also makes it too expensive for scammers to create “millions of accounts”.
At the same time, the company is slashing prices for some of its advertising slots. This includes giving new bookings a 50% discount, provided they sign on before 31 July.
X says the discounts will allow advertisers to “gain reach during crucial moments” like sporting events.
