Twitter is starting to delete legacy blue verification check marks Thursday.
The company said in March that it would begin removing legacy check marks on April 1 and that anyone looking to be verified would need to pay for Twitter Blue. It seems that Twitter has waited until today to begin removing them.
“Tomorrow, 4/20, we are removing legacy verified check marks. To remain verified on Twitter, individuals can sign up for Twitter Blue,” Twitter Verified tweeted Wednesday.
According to some reports, removing verified check marks is time-consuming and must be done manually. It remains unclear if every legacy check mark will be gone by the end of the day.
The transition from the original verification process to Mr. Musk’s Twitter Blue has been rocky. Since launching late last year, current users who are not rabid fans of Mr. Musk have been reluctant to sign up for the service, which costs users $8 a month or $84 a year.
Celebrities and high-profile users have also weighed in on the model. Many users have concerns about impersonation on the site that would potentially be easier if users can simply pay for verification. Actor William Shatner responded with skepticism toward the concept when it was announced that legacy verification badges would be going away last month.
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My choice is to wait for Twitter’s new guardrails; which invariably will go up after some false blue check incident happens & see if I qualify. Until then I’ll go # checkless: that’s the true equality standard …or is it in ?
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 28, 2023
I guess we will see.
My best, # BluelessBill
The new model for verification is just one of Mr. Musk’s plans to make Twitter profitable in the wake of advertisers leaving the platform in droves.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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