Twitter blurs difference between free and paid verified accounts

Twitter has stopped differentiating between user accounts that were verified for free, and accounts that paid for blue tick verification after Elon Musk’s takeover of the platform in late 2022.

Twitter has stopped differentiating between user accounts that were verified for free, and accounts that paid for blue tick verification after Elon Musk’s takeover of the platform in late 2022.

In March, clicking on an account’s blue tick allowed users to check whether they were legacy verified accounts, or subscribers to Twitter Blue. However, the new explanation box no longer clarifies which category the account comes under, obscuring the true number of people who have paid for Twitter Blue.

“This account is verified because it’s subscribed to Twitter Blue or is a legacy verified account,” stated the info box when clicking on the blue tick for more details about both legacy verified accounts and Twitter Blue subscribers.

Twitter had announced that it would begin taking away free blue ticks from April 1 unless users subscribed to Twitter Blue. However, several legacy verified accounts noted that they still had their blue ticks on April 1.

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When a user pointed out that The New York Times had said it would not pay for a blue tick, Mr. Musk promised to remove the tick mark for the account. While the @nytimes account lost its verification mark over the weekend, its other official accounts - such as its Books, Arts, World, Travel, and Opinion channels - still had blue tick verification, or the yellow tick marking it as an “official organisation.”

Even so, Mr. Musk went on to mock The New York Times on Sunday, saying that its “propaganda” was uninteresting, and claiming that its Twitter feed was not reader-friendly.