Twitter Blue to roll out today: Pricing, features and more

Twitter-led Elon Musk is set to relaunch the subscription service Twitter Blue on December 12, the company announced via an official tweet. The subscription service will give users access to premium features, including blue ticking, the ability to post 1080p videos, edit tweets, and much more. Elon Musk launched the first version of Twitter Blue in June but withdrew it within 24 hours due to the increase in verified fake accounts on the platform.

The company stated in its tweet, "We're relaunching @TwitterBlue on Monday – subscribe on the web for $8/month or on iOS for $11/month to get access to subscriber-only features, including the blue checkmark," the company.

We should note that this is the third iteration of the Twitter Blue service that the company is preparing to launch. The next iteration of the subscription service is said to be very different, offering many more features than before.

How much do Android and iOS users need to pay?

The microblogging site has confirmed that Android users will need to pay slightly less than iOS users to use Twitter Blue. Android users will need to pay $8, while iOS users will need to pay $11 to use the service. Now, why a higher price for iPhone users? While there is no official statement from the company on the matter, Twitter is believed to be charging $3 more to iOS users due to the higher commission from Apple's App Store.

In July 2022, Apple announced that it would charge a standard 30 per cent commission rate for App Store transactions and regular subscriptions, and Musk was recently seen protesting it. At one point, Musk said that Apple might have considered banning Twitter from the app store. Following the claims, Musk met with Tim Cook, the Apple CEO at Apple Park and said everything had been taken care of. Despite that, the company has decided to charge more for iOS users who wish to get the Twitter Blue service.

In addition to the blue checkmark and the option to edit tweets, Twitter Blue will introduce reading mode, the official gold check for business accounts, and the grey checkmark for government and multilateral accounts, making it possible to distinguish between accounts. Twitter Blue will be adding more features in the coming days, including fewer ads, the ability to post longer videos, and much more.

What happens to accounts that are already verified? Twitter may ask those users to purchase the Twitter Blue subscription, or else they will lose the blue badge. The company is expected to reveal more details about the same once the Blue subscription is available to everyone.