X, Formerly Twitter, Could Move Behind Paywall For All Users, Elon Musk Said

Is X (formerly known as Twitter) about to move behind a paywall for all? Let's rewind a little - X already offers a paid subscription with bonus features for users who decide to pay for X Premium. In India, X Premium costs ?900 per month on Android and iOS; and ?650 on web monthly.

Why X wants to charge every user

With a premium tier already in place, why is X exploring a paywall for all X users? Recently, Elon Musk said that X could charge its users a "small monthly payment" in order to tackle bots on the social media platform.

Reuters

During a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Elon Musk said that X is "moving to having a small, monthly payment for use of the X system" in order to combat "vast armies of bots."

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However, Elon Musk did not reveal how much the company would charge its free users and what additional features they'll receive out of this. During the chat, Musk said that X currently has 550 million "monthly users" who generate 100-200 million posts per day. Musk added that the new change will include a "small amount of money" in order to deal with bots.

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Musk believes that a subscription fee would make it extremely difficult for bots to create accounts. Each bot would require a credit card to register on the platform. "It¡¯s the only way I can think of to combat vast armies of bots," Musk said.

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"Because a bot costs a fraction of a penny ¨C call it a tenth of a penny ¨C but even if it has to pay a few dollars or something, the effective cost of bots is very high," Musk explained.

Reuters

What do you think about Elon Musk's plans to charge a small fee to all its users? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.