Elon Musk has suggested that everyone using X, previously known as Twitter, may have to pay to use the platform.
In a talk with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Elon Musk, who is a billionaire and runs companies like Tesla and SpaceX, said that making users pay was the only way to deal with bots (automated accounts).
“We’re moving to having a small monthly payment for use of the system,” he said.
We asked X for more details, but they haven’t responded yet.
We’re not sure if this was just a casual comment or if it means they have a more solid plan in the works.
Mr. Musk has been saying for a while that he wants to charge users for verifying their accounts to reduce bots and fake accounts on the platform.
Since he took over Twitter last year, he has been trying to encourage users to pay for a better service, now called X Premium.
Paid subscribers get more features, like longer posts and more visibility on the platform.
But right now, people can still use X for free.
Even though X could make a lot of money by charging users, Mr. Musk says the main reason for doing this is to fight against bots.
“A bot costs a fraction of a penny” to make he said.
“But if somebody even has to pay a few dollars or something, some minor amount, the effective cost to bots is very high”.
In the US, X Premium costs $8 per month, but the price varies in other countries.
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Elon Musk also mentioned that they are thinking of offering cheaper options for users.
He said, “We’re actually going to come up with a lower tier pricing. So we just want it to be just a small amount of money.”
He added, “This is a longer discussion, but in my view, this is actually the only defense against vast armies of bots.”
However, there’s a risk. If X starts charging users, many might stop using the platform.
This could lead to less money from advertisements, which is the main way X makes money.
During his conversation with the Israeli prime minister, Elon Musk also talked about the problem of antisemitism on X.
A group called the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has accused X of not doing enough to stop antisemitic content.
In response, Musk said that the company would sue the ADL to defend its platform’s reputation.
In his talk with Mr. Netanyahu, Musk reiterated that he is against antisemitism.
Mr. Netanyahu acknowledged that balancing free speech and content moderation is challenging but encouraged Musk to find the right balance.
He said, “I hope you find within the confines of the First Amendment, the ability to stop not only antisemitism… but any collective hatred of people that antisemitism represents.”
“against antisemitism” and even mentioned that his company might sue the ADL to protect the platform’s reputation.
Prime Minister Netanyahu acknowledged the challenge of striking a balance between free speech and content moderation.
He urged Musk to find a way to combat not only antisemitism but also any form of collective hatred.
Netanyahu expressed confidence in Musk’s commitment to this cause within the boundaries of the First Amendment.
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