SAN FRANCISCO (AP) 鈥� Twitter has announced a subscription service for $7.99 a month that includes a blue check now given only to verified accounts as new owner Elon Musk works to overhaul the platform鈥檚 verification system just ahead of .
In an update to Apple iOS devices available in the U.S., sa国际传媒, Australia, New Zealand and the U.K., Twitter said users who 鈥渟ign up now鈥� for the new 鈥淭witter Blue with verification鈥� can receive the blue check next to their names 鈥渏ust like the celebrities, companies and politicians you already follow.鈥�
But Twitter employee Esther Crawford tweeted Saturday that the 鈥渘ew Blue isn鈥檛 live yet 鈥� the sprint to our launch continues but some folks may see us making updates because we are testing and pushing changes in real-time.鈥� Verified accounts did not appear to be losing their checks so far.
It was not immediately clear when the subscription would go live. Crawford told The Associated Press in a Twitter message that it is coming 鈥渟oon but it hasn鈥檛 launched yet.鈥� Twitter did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
Anyone being able to get the blue check could lead to confusion and the rise of disinformation ahead of Tuesday's elections, but Musk tweeted Saturday in response to a question about the risk of impostors impersonating verified profiles 鈥� such as politicians and election officials 鈥� that 鈥淭witter will suspend the account attempting impersonation and keep the money!"
鈥淪o if scammers want to do this a million times, that鈥檚 just a whole bunch of free money," he said.
But many fear could gut the guardrails of content moderation and verification on the social platform that public agencies, election boards, police departments and news outlets use to keep people reliably informed.
The change will end , which was launched in 2009 to prevent impersonations of high-profile accounts such as celebrities and politicians. Twitter now has about 423,000 verified accounts, many of them rank-and-file journalists from around the globe that the company verified regardless of how many followers they had.
Experts have raised that, while not perfect, has helped Twitter鈥檚 238 million daily users determine whether . Current verified accounts include celebrities, athletes and influencers, along with government agencies and politicians worldwide, journalists and news outlets, activists, businesses and brands, and Musk himself.
鈥淗e knows the blue check has value, and he鈥檚 trying to exploit it quickly,鈥� said Jennifer Grygiel, a social media expert and associate professor of communications at Syracuse University. 鈥淗e needs to earn the trust of the people before he can sell them anything. Why would you buy a car from a salesman that you know has essentially proved to be chaotic?鈥�
The update Twitter made to the iOS version of its app does not mention verification as part of the new blue check system. So far, the update is not available on Android devices.
Musk, who had earlier said he wants to 鈥渧erify all humans鈥� on Twitter, has floated that public figures would be identified in ways other than the blue check. Currently, for instance, government officials are identified with text under names stating they are posting from an official government account.
President Joe Biden鈥檚 @POTUS account, for example, says in gray letters it belongs to a 鈥淯nited States government official.鈥�
Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton, who has 7.8 million Twitter followers, told the AP, 鈥淚 could actually just delete my Twitter account, I never use it. I find it really healthy to delete social media from my phone for periods of time."
"But it鈥檚 also a really powerful tool to connect with people, so I appreciate that and I try to use it as that and not as something that鈥檚 veering me off course of the journey that I鈥檓 on in life,鈥� he said.
The announcement comes a day after Twitter began laying off workers to cut costs and as more as a cautious corporate world waits to see how the platform will operate under its new owner.
About half of the company鈥檚 staff of 7,500 was let go, tweeted Yoel Roth, Twitter鈥檚 head of safety and integrity.
He said the company鈥檚 front-line content moderation staff was the group the least affected by the job cuts and that 鈥渆fforts on election integrity 鈥� including harmful misinformation that can suppress the vote and combatting state-backed information operations 鈥� remain a top priority.鈥�
Twitter co-founder and former CEO for the job losses.
鈥淚 own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I grew the company size too quickly,鈥� he tweeted Saturday. 鈥淚 apologize for that.鈥�
late Friday that there was no choice but to cut jobs 鈥渨hen the company is losing over $4M/day.鈥� He did not provide details on the daily losses at Twitter and said employees who lost their jobs were offered three months鈥� pay as severance.
He also said Twitter has already seen 鈥渁 massive drop in revenue鈥� as advertisers face pressure from activists to get off the platform, which heavily relies on advertising to make money.
United Airlines on Saturday became the latest major brand to pause advertising on Twitter, joining companies including General Motors, REI, General Mills and Audi.
Musk tried to reassure advertisers last week, saying because of what he calls his commitment to free speech.
But concerns remain about whether a lighter touch on content moderation at Twitter will result in users sending out more offensive tweets. That could hurt companies鈥� brands if their advertisements appear next to them.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker T眉rk on Saturday urged Musk to 鈥渆nsure human rights are central to the management of Twitter.鈥� In an open letter, T眉rk said reports that the company鈥檚 whole human rights team and much of the ethical AI team were laid off was not 鈥渁n encouraging start.鈥�
鈥淟ike all companies, Twitter needs to understand the harms associated with its platform and take steps to address them," T眉rk said. 鈥淩espect for our shared human rights should set the guardrails for the platform鈥檚 use and evolution.鈥�
Meanwhile, Twitter cannot simply cut costs to grow profits, and Musk needs to find ways to raise more revenue, said Dan Ives, an analyst with Wedbush. But that may be easier said than done with the new subscription program for blue checks.
鈥淯sers have gotten this for free,鈥� Ives said. 鈥淭here may be massive pushback.鈥�
He expects 20% to 25% of Twitter鈥檚 verified users to sign up initially. The stakes are high for Musk and Twitter to get this right early and for signups to work smoothly, he added.
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have a second chance to make a first impression,鈥� Ives said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a train-wreck first week for Musk owning the Twitter platform. Now you鈥檝e cut 50% (of the workforce). There are questions about just the stability of the platform, and advertisers are watching this with a keen eye.鈥�
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AP Business Writer Stan Choe in New York and Associated Press Writer Jenna Fryer in Charlotte, N.C., contributed to this story.
Barbara Ortutay, The Associated Press
