Snippet: X Will Start Charging New Users In Two Countries $1 Per Year ☇

Alex Heath for The Verge:

The subscription, part of a so-called “Not A Bot” program, is beginning in those two countries and is designed to “bolster our already significant efforts to reduce spam, manipulation of our platform and bot activity,” X said Tuesday in an unsigned post on its help center. In addition, new web users in New Zealand and the Philippines will have to verify their account with a phone number, the post says. Fortune first reported that Musk was going to charge new users $1 a year shortly before X’s announcement went live.

X’s post doesn’t explain why the new $1 subscription is only for new users joining via the web and not the mobile app, or why Not a Bot is only being rolled out in two countries…

It seems so many of the terrible changes have been in the name of “fighting bots” which for most people haven’t really been a problem over the last fifteen or so years. It’s an excuse and I wouldn’t be surprised if that $1 charge eventually becomes a full-on subscription—”We’re going to start charging everyone, but don’t worry, your payment information is already on file.” Anyone who would willingly give this dumpster fire of a company your phone number and a payment method at this point needs to reconsider if X Twitter has actual value.

By the way, I really hate how every media outlet has to still say, “X, the service formerly known as Twitter.” Clearly, the new branding is a winner.