X may go paid soon for all users, hints Musk

Washington: Today seems to be a bad day for all Twitter or X users because the latest word is that Elon Musk is going to start charging everyone to use the platform. This means that even if you are not a Blue subscriber, you will still have to pay for the platform to be able to use it.

In a live-streamed conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, Musk said the social network is "moving to have a small monthly payment for use of the X system" to combat "vast armies of bots."

The Tesla and SpaceX boss didn't specify what the new subscription payment would cost but described it as a "small amount of money."

"It's the only way I can think of to combat vast armies of bots," Musk said. "Because a bot costs a fraction of a penny — call it a tenth of a penny — but even if it has to pay…a few dollars or something, the effective cost of bots is very high." This is not the first time Musk has mooted the idea of charging everyone for X. In 2022, Musk was considering putting all of Twitter behind a paywall, according to a report by Platformer. Musk has long advocated for charging users for verification as a solution for getting rid of bots and fake accounts on X.

Since Musk bought Twitter last year, he has been trying to encourage users to pay for an enhanced version of the service, which is now called X Premium. X has given paid subscribers more features, such as longer posts and increased visibility, to make the platform more attractive to them. At the moment, users can still use X for free.