X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, has launched a subscription model for new users in New Zealand and the Philippines. The move is part of the company’s efforts to combat bots and spam on the platform.
X announced on October 17, 2023, that new users in these two countries will have to pay an annual fee of $1 to access certain features on the platform.
These features include posting content, liking, replying, reposting, quoting posts from other accounts, and bookmarking. Additionally, new users in these regions must undergo phone number verification.
The company stated that this program is designed to safeguard the platform against bots and spammers, who often seek to manipulate the platform, thus disrupting the experience of genuine X users.
However, the subscription fee is optional. Users who opt not to pay will have limited functionality, restricted to “read-only” actions such as reading posts, watching videos, and following accounts.
X has ramped up efforts to battle issues of bots and spam since Elon Musk acquired the microblogging platform last year.
Under Musk, the social media company introduced a paid blue badge verification program designed to reduce the proliferation of these accounts on the platform.
However, that has yet to be successful as the social media site continues to battle the menace.
How X users are reacting to the subscription fee
The new development has generated mixed reactions from crypto community members who argued that this might not solve the platform’s spam issues.
On-chain analyst okHOTSHOT said:
“X is so bend [sic] on thinking revenue streams will help fight bots. If only they’d look to the obvious solution: follower filters similar to the current notification filter.”
CryptoQuant co-founder Ki Young Ju noted that the $1 paywall was insufficient to deter spammers who can generate significantly higher profits from their scams.
Meanwhile, renowned on-chain sleuth ZachXBT pointed out that most bot accounts on the platform already pay for the blue checkmark.
Further, CryptoSlate has also observed scam accounts holding gold checkmarks costing thousands of dollars per month.
