The billionaire also reveals the platform boasts 550 million monthly users and sees up to 200 million daily posts
Elon Musk hinted that X, formerly Twitter, plans to introduce user fees. The X owner mentioned that introducing a paywall would help combat the issue of bots, which has been a source of frustration for Musk. During a conversation with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, the Tesla CEO, and the world’s wealthiest individual, Elon Musk, suggested that X was gearing up to implement charges for its user base. Presently, Twitter only charges users for its subscription service, X Premium, which offers benefits such as a verified account badge and is priced at $11 per month in the US for iPhones and £11 in the UK.
We are transitioning towards implementing a modest monthly fee for system usage,” Musk stated.
Musk mentioned that setting up bots currently costs “a fraction of a penny,” and he further proposed that increasing the account cost to “a few dollars or a similar amount” could deter software operators. He also pointed out that each time a bot creator wanted to create another bot, they would require a new payment method.
Musk also disclosed that X had amassed 550 million monthly users who generate as many as 200 million daily posts. Previously, the platform had gauged its user base using a different metric, known as monetizable daily active users, which stood at 238 million before Musk’s acquisition of the platform in October 2022.
Musk has brought up the possibility of implementing a paywall as the platform grapples with a significant decline in advertising revenue, which has traditionally been its primary income source. He has stated that a 60% drop in ad revenue was triggered by an advertiser boycott, driven by apprehensions regarding his leadership of the platform and its handling of inappropriate or hateful content.
While Musk’s conversation with Netanyahu was initially intended to focus on technology and artificial intelligence, it swiftly shifted towards discussions about free speech and antisemitism. This shift came amidst allegations that X was not taking sufficient measures to address racist speech on the platform.
Netanyahu expressed his hope that Musk would discover means, while adhering to the constraints of the First Amendment, to combat antisemitism and various other manifestations of hatred on X.
I encourage and implore you to strike that delicate balance,” Netanyahu stated. “It’s a challenging endeavor.”
Musk has employed his X account to convey his stance, stating that he is “pro-free speech but vehemently against any form of antisemitism
