As the new owner of Twitter, Elon Musk (51) has caused a lot of confusion about the previous blue tick verification system. Before Musk's takeover of the news service, the free blue tick guaranteed that the account in question was actually operated by the claimed person or entity. But with the introduction of a monthly price of eight US dollars, every Twitter user should now be able to buy the blue tick.
Yesterday, Twitter employee Esther Crawford presented a second, additional check mark via tweet, which will show the authenticity of an account in the future. The shape is exactly the same as the familiar blue tick, but the new icon is just an outline on a white background. Next to the new gray tick is the word "Official," as a tweet from Crawford shows.
A second post from the Twitter employee goes on to say: "Not all previously verified accounts will receive the 'Official' label and the label is not available for purchase". Rather, according to Twitter, it is awarded to "government accounts, commercial companies, business partners, large media organizations, publishers and some public figures".
From now on, accounts can have both a blue tick and the new gray tick.
The new gray tick verification system aims to limit the spread of misinformation as well as the imitation of important people or organizations. "The Guardian" reports that there were concerns internally at Twitter about whether government officials would have been willing to pay to verify their accounts.
The blue tick system will continue to run in parallel on Twitter. This costs eight US dollars per month. However, Twitter will not separately verify the identity of such individuals or entities.
However, the new blue tick offers users some advantages. Only half as many ads can be seen and longer videos and audio contributions can be posted. The visibility of your own posts also improves, so they are ranked higher. The new Twitter boss Musk announced on November 1 that the price for the blue tick would be based on the purchasing power of the respective country worldwide.
