Elon Musk’s X Offers Free Blue Checks, Free Subscriptions

Tom Jowitt,
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Twitter and other social media apps on a screen

Twitter began offering free premium features, including “blue checks,” to selected users this week, amid reports of declining active users

Elon Musk’s X (formerly known as Twitter) has this week begun offering selected users premium account status free-of-charge.

CNBC reported that late on Wednesday, X began rolling out free premium features, including verification badges known as “blue checks,” to selected users.

Indeed, many users were reportedly notified that they had been given complimentary subscriptions as “an influential member of the community on X.”

Image credit: Elon Musk

Free premium accounts

In an effort to generate revenue, Musk from November 2022 had begun charging $8 per month for the blue check subscription service, and also offered large discounts to companies to advertise on the platform.

The X Help Center states that subscriptions fall into these three tiers: Basic, Premium and Premium+.

By subscribing, users get access to exclusive features, such as the ability to display a blue checkmark on their profile. The Basic web offering starts at $32 a year in the US, while Premium+ costs $168 annually.

Last week, Elon Musk tweeted that every account on the platform with more than 2,500 verified subscriber followers would get Premium features for free, while accounts with more than 5,000 would get Premium+ for free.

CNBC reported that from Wednesday this week, many users including some of its reporters, were notified that they had been given complimentary subscriptions as “an influential member of the community on X.”

X reportedly said it reserves the right to cancel the subscription “in its sole discretion” and it is unclear how long users will have access to free premium features.

It is also unclear whether it will be possible for them to opt out of the service.

Declining users?

Offering subscriptions had been a way for Elon Musk to bolster revenues at X, after many advertisers paused advertising on the platform, due to Musk’s problematic behaviour and controversial content on the platform.

And Musk has made multiple posts recently about the number of users on X, after two research firms published data that showed the number of active users on the platform have been decreasing since his takeover.

Elon Musk’s platform has also this week made two high profile ‘Safety’ appointments, in a move to encourage advertisers to return the platform.

Kylie McRoberts has become the Head of Safety, and Yale Cohen joins X’s Safety team as Head of Brand Safety and Advertiser Solutions.”

It comes nine months after X’s previous head of Trust and Safety had stepped down.

Ella Erwin resigned in June 2023 after only being in the role for seven months, after she taken over the job from Yoel Roth, who had resigned in the weeks following Musk’s takeover.