Twitter's Blue Tick drama: Celebrities rejoice; Verification badges return

The blue tick badges have been free-of-charge used by Twitter for a number of accounts with more than one million followers. After numerous high-profile accounts worldwide had their blue checkmark deleted, the microblogging network did this. The platform started deleting the legacy blue tick from all accounts that had not previously paid the badge subscription fee just a few days ago. But in an unexpected turn of events, a number of celebrities, including actor Shah Rukh Khan, singer Amitabh Bachchan, and former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah, received their blue tick badges back on Sunday.

The history of Twitter's blue check marks, a straightforward verification mechanism that has evolved into an exclusive status symbol, began with several high-profile impersonations in 2008 and 2009, just as the platform was beginning to take off.

The business's verification system will become a source of income for Twitter in 2022, according to billionaire Elon Musk, who acquired control of the company for $44 billion. It's a complete about-face from the position he made earlier this year, before his buyout completed, when he declared he wanted to "verify all humans" on Twitter.

In a Twitter conversation with author Stephen King, he appeared to immediately back down from his initial proposal to charge users $20 per month for the "blue tick" and a few other services, writing "If that gets instituted, I'm gone like Enron."
"We must find a way to pay the bills! Twitter can't only rely on sponsors. Consider $8," Musk answered.

Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullshit.

Power to the people! Blue for $8/month.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 1, 2022

There has been no official statement from Twitter on the subject yet, despite the fact that the business is returning the blue tick.
Many users of social media praised Twitter's most recent decision to reinstate verification badges on prominent celebrity accounts. On Thursday, the microblogging platform removed the old blue checkmarks.

There has been no official announcement from Twitter regarding the return of the legacy blue ticks, but the Elon Musk-owned business is apparently bringing back the verified status for handles with a large number of followers.

Amitabh Bachchan, who is an active Twitter user, gave a funny twist to his hit '90s song "Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast" from Mohra and wrote, "Hey Musk bro! Thank you very, very much for reinstating the blue tick in front of my name. I feel like singing. Will you listen? So, listen. 'Tu cheez Musk Musk, tu cheez badi hai, Musk'."

Priyanka Chopra Jonas, on the other hand, was surprised to see the blue tick back on her Twitter handle. "Woah! Dunno how but the blue tick is back. I’m Priyanka again!" PeeCee wrote on the microblogging site.

"Hey #BlueTick welcome back. I missed you. did u miss me #justasking. Thank you @Twitter," Prakash Raj tweeted.
Sharing a picture of herself in a traditional Kanjivaram saree, Nayanthara wrote, "‘BLUE TICK’ Verified."

"The blue tick is randomly back again? What is happening?" wrote Malavika Mohanan.

Twitter has only allowed paying users to access legacy blue ticks in an effort to increase money. Paying about $8 a month is required for those who want to keep their verification badge. They charge anything from Rs 650 to Rs 900 in India.

Shradha Agarwal, Co-Founder & CEO, Grapes, says: "With several celebrities, sports personalities and politicians losing their blue ticks, what Musk started several months ago has finally come to fruition. Seeing the blue ticks removed is supposed to spur the users into action and opt for the subscription. It’s still too early to say, but as of now, the sentiment among the average users seems to range from indifference to indecision. I believe a more pronounced adoption of the subscription model will come if our immediate peers start to opt for it or if our favourite influencers start promoting its benefits - in short, if it becomes the next “cool” thing on social media."

According to her, this could definitely open up considerable opportunities for micro and nano influencers, as a blue tick will help them establish their authenticity among their followers and the brands looking to collaborate. "Twitter cancelling the legacy blue ticks opens the floor for small-scale celebrities and creators, and in turn could aid in boosting the creator economy on the platform."

Arvind Balan, Co-Founder & CEO, Maxperience, says: "It was about time that Twitter enacted what was in the works for months. I believe it'll turn out to be a suitable decision for the general user in the long run. The clarity that this move brings will also help avoid another Eli Lilly-type scenarios, where paid accounts try to fool users under the garb of verified accounts. At a time when Twitter is cash-strapped and trying to maximise monetisation, it was important that the confusion of verified/ paid Blue Ticks got removed."