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On Wednesday morning, many entrepreneurs, journalists and information junkies had been met with a paywall they’ve been dreading: X, previously often called Twitter, began charging customers to entry TweetDeck.
TweetDeck, now known as X Professional, permits customers to view and customise a number of feeds that replace in actual time. The platform was acquired by Twitter in 2011 after it turned one of the well-liked methods for individuals to entry the positioning.
The service has traditionally been free to make use of, however X introduced in a post in July that it could grow to be a subscriber-only function. Beginning Wednesday, customers who need entry to X Professional should pay for X Premium, the service launched by the positioning’s proprietor, Elon Musk, as a approach to generate extra income for the corporate. The subscription prices customers $84 a yr.
Individuals who buy X Premium may even obtain a blue checkmark on their account, along with prioritized rankings in replies and search, entry to longer posts and fewer advertisements, amongst different options. The service, previously known as Twitter Blue, obtained off to a rocky begin in November when it was pulled after customers created accounts posing as well-liked manufacturers and celebrities. Twitter Blue relaunched once more in December, although impersonation issues persevered.
Musk, who can also be the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, acquired Twitter late final yr for $44 billion. Staff and customers felt his influence instantly, as he enacted steep job cuts and launched quite a few main new options and coverage adjustments on the platform.
Most just lately, the corporate started to hold out a sweeping rebrand, which Musk introduced in July. Twitter retired its well-known blue and white hen brand and remodeled into X. Adjustments to the names of Twitter’s companies resembling TweetDeck rapidly adopted.
