X, Formerly Twitter, Initiates Annual Fee for New Users in an Anti-Spam Experiment

Today, the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, announced the commencement of a novel experiment. This new venture involves imposing an annual $1 fee on "unverified new users" to engage with posts. The experiment has already gone live in the Philippines and New Zealand, and it does not impact the existing user base.

For the nominal fee, new users will be able to perform a range of activities on the platform, including posting, liking, reposting, replying, bookmarking, and quoting posts. Those who opt not to pay will be restricted to a read-only account, allowing them merely to view posts and follow accounts.

The driving force behind the “Not A Bot” program, as clarified by the support account of the company, is not to generate profits but to curtail spam. Skepticism may surround this justification, especially considering that the company is owned by Elon Musk.

In keeping with the company's statement, the “Not A Bot” program is an initiative to intensify counter-spam efforts, prevent manipulation of the platform, and reduce bot activity, while maintaining platform accessibility through the minimal fee. The company assured that these measures aren’t meant to drive profit. Additionally, the company intends to disclose the results of the program's effectiveness against spam on its support page.

This initiative somewhat aligns with Musk's previous mention of plans that X intends to charge users "a small monthly payment" for availing its services. Although the currently tested fee is an annual one, the overarching philosophy remains the same.

In June, X introduced the requirement for users to log into the site to view posts, a decision that was rolled back shortly afterward, reinstating viewing access for logged-out users.

As per a recent evaluation by market intelligence firm Similarweb, X has seen a reduction in traffic a year subsequent to Musk's $44 billion acquisition. The platform has since embarked on major cost-cutting exercises and profit-making ventures.

Last month, Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, projected the company’s profitability by 2024 in an interview while skirting the question regarding the potential user fee.

At present, X offers only a single-tiered $8 per month subscription. However, newly unearthed code suggests the imminent introduction of three premium tiers, one of which is ad-free.