Elon Musk casually announced plans to start charging everyone who uses X, his new name for Twitter, a monthly fee.
The world’s richest man revealed the planned paywall late Monday during a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he was asked how he intends to deal with the massive army of bots that amplify hate speech.
“The single most important reason we’re moving to get a small monthly fee for using the X system is the only way I can think of to combat a large army of bots,” Musk replied casually.
He explained that adding subscriptions to access social media sites would make it difficult for bots to create accounts because they would each have to register a new credit card.
Musk didn’t say how much he would charge per user, but said it would be a “low-end price” of what X charges its premium customers — which is about $8 per month.
“We want it to be just a small amount of money,” he said.
Elon Musk announced plans to start charging people who use X (formerly Twitter) a monthly fee.Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA
Musk explained that adding subscriptions to access social media sites would make it difficult for bots to create accounts because they would each have to register a new credit card. AP
“The single most important reason we’re moving to get a small monthly fee for using the X system is the only way I can think of to combat a large army of bots,” Musk said. AFP via Getty Images
“It’s a longer discussion, but in my view, this is the only defense against a large army of bots, because when AI gets really, really good, it’s actually able to pass CAPTCHA tests like this better than humans.”
Musk previously floated the idea of requiring users to pay a monthly fee last year amid massive layoffs at the company, according to a report from technology newsletter Platformer.
It reported that Tesla’s CEO had discussed the idea with venture capitalist David Sacks in November, but the idea was rejected for offering broad-scale validation first.
But the company continues to bleed money, with Musk announcing earlier this month that Twitter’s ad revenue was down 60%.
He blamed a challenge from the Anti-Defamation League for the loss of revenue after the nonprofit reported an increase in hate speech against X following the reinstatement of banned accounts there.
Musk tweeted that the ADL was “trying to kill this platform by falsely accusing him & me of being anti-Semitic.”
As he faced backlash for the tweet, Musk announced he would meet with Netanyahu.
“He basically said, ‘If I have to pay too much for Twitter, you will too,'” reporter Kara Swisher tweeted upon hearing the news.
Tesla’s CEO discussed the idea with venture capitalist David Sacks in November, but it was rejected for offering broad-scale validation, according to reports. Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/Shutterstock
The announcement that X might be placed behind a paywall drew outrage on the platform, with reporter David Leavitt tweeting that the move would be “the death of this app.”
“The reason social media is popular is because it’s free and your friends are there,” he said. “Not everyone can afford to pay.”
Historian Alex von Tunzelmann added: “Even if you’re happy to pay the fee, I really don’t think it would be a smart idea to trust this company with your credit card or bank details.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
