What you need to know
- Twitter has delayed the re-launch of its Blue subscription service.
- A new report says Elon Musk doesn't want to offer Twitter Blue as an in-app purchase on iOS in order to avoid Apple's 30% fee.
- The social media company hasn't specified when it plans to restore the subscription service.
Twitter's new Blue subscription service has been delayed indefinitely supposedly because CEO Elon Musk plans to circumvent Apple's 30% fee for in-app purchases, Platformer reports.
Musk confirmed last month that Twitter Blue was set to be relaunched on November 29 to give users access to the blue check mark for $7.99 per month. The service first launched on iOS in early November, but it was marred by controversy days later due to an increase in the number of fake accounts that gained the blue verified mark. As a result, it was put on hold.
Twitter intended to address the issue by introducing gold and grey verified ticks on the platform. The gold check marks are meant for companies, grey for government officials, and blue for individuals who pay for Twitter Blue.
The promised launch date came by with no sign of the new Blue subscription. Platformer reports that Twitter doesn't plan on offering the service as an in-app purchase upon relaunch. In a Slack channel message seen by the outlet, a product manager at Twitter was quoted as saying the company will make some changes to Blue before resuming the service. The changes include "requiring users to verify their phone numbers on Twitter’s website, increasing the listed price of $7.99 to $8, and updating various marketing and help pages."
In addition to the blue check mark, Twitter Blue subscribers will have early access to new features and see fewer ads on the platform. It's not clear how Twitter intends to avoid Apple's App Store cut for every in-app purchase. Earlier this week, Musk criticized the tech giant's policy while accusing it of undermining free speech.
Twitter did not immediately respond to Android Central's request for comment. We will update this article once we hear back.
