November 9, 2022
Twitter has developed a new label for previously verified accounts following Musk’s announcement that he intends to offer the blue checkmark, which appears on the profile page of verified Twitter users, to anyone who pays a new $8 monthly fee for Twitter’s premium service.
According to Twitter’s early stage products executive Esther Crawford, when the company launches its new $8 premium subscription, it will use a new label called “Official” for selected verified accounts, including major media outlets, celebrities, governments, and government officials.
Crawford revealed that the new mark, which was recently discovered during internal testing, will be applied to ‘select accounts’ in the near future, adding that it cannot be purchased and, importantly, will not be automatically assigned to previously verified accounts.
This leaves Twitter with three types of accounts: Twitter Blue subscribers with a blue checkmark (the old, verified mark); accounts with an “official” label that replaces the old verification mark; and accounts without either.
Crawford also confirmed that the new Twitter subscription product, which will allow paid users to display blue ticks on their accounts, will not replace the current identity verifier, as the lack of identity verification is likely to lead to public personalities being embodied.
Concerns like these reportedly prevent Twitter from implementing the proposed $8 monthly system, as fake accounts are a recurring theme for government officials on Twitter.
The sources for this piece include an article in Reuters.
