- Twitter Blue has relaunched for three months, offering subscribers premium features for $11/month.
- A new feature may be rolling out soon, allowing subscribers to hide their verification tick.
- TechCrunch reported that the relaunch was “disappointing,” with $11 million in mobile subscriptions.
About three months after its relaunch, Twitter Blue subscriptions have not been the hugely profitable mainstay of advertising revenue that Elon Musk had hoped for the social platform.
According to a report from TechCrunch, the “disappointing” relaunch – complete with perks like an edit button and a new “verified” badge, long considered a status symbol for public figures, now available for purchase – doesn’t reported to the social media platform that $11 million in mobile subscriptions since Musk brought it back in December.
A Twitter Blue subscription costs $8 per month if purchased through the website and $11 per month if purchased through an app for Android or iOS devices. The information reported in January that around 290,000 users worldwide were paying for Blue subscriptions across all platforms, which would bring in around $28 million in revenue this year.
Twitter’s operating costs in the second quarter of 2022 were $730 million in total spend, according to a report from industry outlet Social Media Today.
The social platform has been aiming to diversify its revenue streams since advertisers fled the platform following the billionaire’s takeover last year. The platform’s revenue fell by 40%, The Information reported, and 500 of the top advertisers fled.
In an attempt to attract more users to Blue, subscribers may be able to toggle the visibility of their blue checkmarks, The Verge reported. Although the feature has not yet rolled out, disabling a visible checkmark may help users avoid piling up on “elite” verification status and memes about how “this mf paid for twitter“in case a post they post goes viral.
The Outline reported that being “verified” had become a pejorative term on Twitter during the Trump era, synonymous with liberal elitist.
Musk did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment. The Twitter press email responded to Insider’s request for comment with a poo emoji.
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