Elon Musk’s X begins rewarding ‘influential’ users with blue checks

Elon Musk’s social media site “influential” people on the platform.

For most users, X Premium is a paid subscription service that can be joined. It includes three levels, “Basic”, “Premium” and “Premium+” depending on the Help Center. By subscribing, users gain access to exclusive features, such as the ability to display a blue checkmark on their profile. The Web Basic plan starts at $32 per year in the US, while Premium+ costs $168.

Last week, Musk said every account on the platform with more than 2,500 verified subscribers would get Premium features for free, while accounts with more than 5,000 would get Premium+ for free, according to a post. Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X, shared Musk’s message Wednesday evening as the features began rolling out.

On Wednesday, many users, including some CNBC journalists, were informed that they had received free subscriptions as an “influential community member on X.” The company said it reserves the right to cancel the subscription “at its sole discretion.”

Musk introduced subscriptions to X in order to supplement the platform’s advertising revenue. Many advertisers have taken a step back from the platform, or stopped buying ads altogether, following Musk’s controversial takeover of Twitter in late 2022. By November 2023, for example, companies like Disney And Apple suspended its online ad campaigns on X after Musk endorsed a conspiracy theory.

It is unclear how long users will have access to free premium features, or whether they will be able to unsubscribe from the service.

X responded to CNBC’s request for comment with an automated message.