X wants to charge new users a fee to make new posts
When Elon Musk initially announced his plans to acquire Twitter (now known as X), he almost backed out of the deal citing a problem with bots. It seems that the bot problem is still something that he is concerned about. It has been revealed that X will now start charging new users a small fee if they want to make posts.
This was initially discovered by X Daily News and was later confirmed by Musk himself. According to Musk, this small fee is a way to combat the “relentless onslaught of bots”. Apparently this is a temporary thing. If the new user doesn’t want to pay, they can wait it out. After three months, they’ll be able to post.
If this sounds familiar, it is because last year, X introduced a $1 annual fee that they would charge new users to make posts on its platform. It was only applicable in New Zealand and the Philippines as part of a test. It is unclear how this fee will deter spam accounts or bots. At $1 a year, it is quite cheap and pretty much anyone can afford to pay it.
If anything, it might actually end up discouraging regular users from interacting and engaging with posts due to the fee. It is possible that this is just another way for X to monetize itself. Whether or not it will work out the way they intend remains to be seen.