Blue tick fiasco: Top accounts regain verification
Twitter has announced that it is restoring the coveted Blue tick marks to some large accounts, even if they did not pay for a subscription. This follows the removal of thousands of legacy verification checkmarks on April 20. Over the weekend, several top accounts with over 1 million followers reported that they had their verification marks reinstated, despite not having paid for them.
Previously, Blue ticks were used to verify the authenticity of accounts belonging to celebrities, organizations, or professionals, such as journalists. The move comes after Elon Musk acquired Twitter in October for $44 billion.
In a recent change to the system, Twitter's new owner Elon Musk had introduced a paid subscription service called 'Twitter Blue' where any account could pay for the Blue tick mark. This replaced the previous system of providing Blue ticks only to verified celebrity, organization or professional accounts. However, in a reversal of this policy, verification marks have now been reinstated on accounts with over one million followers, including those that did not pay for a subscription.
This marks a significant shift for Musk, who had previously admitted to paying for the Blue ticks of several high-profile accounts, despite them not having paid for a subscription.
Elon pays for Lebron James, Stephen King, and William Shatner
Twitter has been embroiled in a drama over the handling of legacy checkmarks in recent days, with several large and notable accounts losing their verification mark. Among them were the accounts of the Pope, Shakira, and Lady Gaga. It is worth noting that the Pope's account now has a gray checkmark that is typically used for government and multilateral organizations. Elon Musk had previously claimed that he was personally paying for the subscription for a select few accounts, such as Lebron James, Stephen King, and William Shatner. However, it appears that the company is now extending this gift to many other accounts as well.
Just Shatner, LeBron and King
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 21, 2023
Back in March, there were reports that Twitter was considering offering a free verification mark to the top 10,000 brands and companies. However, it is unclear whether this same policy will be applied to personal accounts. The issue of verification has been a highly debated topic under Twitter's new management. Shortly after taking over the company, Elon Musk introduced a paid verification system, which led to a proliferation of fake celebrity and brand accounts and backfired on the site.
In a recent development, Twitter is reportedly asking brands to pay for verification in order to run ad campaigns on the platform, which some see as a money-grabbing move. The company has been sending emails to various accounts about mandatory verification requirements for advertisements, but so far has not made any changes to the ads account page. Furthermore, Twitter is displaying a shortcut to sign up for verified organization services on the sidebar of all accounts.
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