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BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Two were martyred in an initial toll of the Israeli drone strike that targeted the al-Asira neighborhood in the city of Baalbek, eastern Lebanon
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: An Israeli drone strike targeted the al-Asira neighborhood east of Baalbek, eastern Lebanon
Sheikh Naim Qassem to the pager attack survivors: You are the greatest resistance. Know that 'Israel' will fall because it embodies aggression, crime, and occupation; victory is truly yours
Sheikh Qassem to the pager attack survivors: The value of what you are doing despite your wounds is immense, and here you are, treading the path of the Master of Nation's Martyrs and the leaders
Sheikh Qassem to the pager attack survivors: You are moving forward with insight deeper than sight itself. The enemy sought to eliminate your role in the battle, yet you remain steadfast and continue the fight
Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem to the pager attack survivors one year later: You are healing from your wounds and rising above them. You have successfully passed the test
Palestinian media: Reports of stabbing operation in occupied al-Quds.
Israeli media: Sirens blare in Arava in South, near Ramon Airport.
Egyptian PM Mostafa Madbouli: Egypt is targeted in plans to redraw regional map
AEOI Chief Mohammad Eslami: Our presence in IAEA General Council and fact-checking helped in preventing unilateral rhetoric that aims to portray Iran as an unregulated country

Too frequent-too big? Ad-free Twitter comes with costlier subscription

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 22 Jan 2023 11:19
2 Min Read

The announcement comes as the social network suffers significant economic uncertainty since Musk's October purchase.

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  • An illustration photo shows a phone screen displaying a photo of Elon Musk with the Twitter logo shown in the background, in Washington. (AFP)
    An illustration photo shows a phone screen displaying Elon Musk with the Twitter logo shown in the background. (AFP)

In a series of tweets on Saturday, Twitter CEO Elon Musk announced that the company's subscription service would show less advertising to customers, including an ad-free tier.

The announcement comes as the social network has suffered significant economic uncertainty since Musk's October purchase.

"Ads are too frequent on Twitter and too big. Taking steps to address both in coming weeks," Musk posted to his Twitter account Saturday.

Ads are too frequent on Twitter and too big. Taking steps to address both in coming weeks.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 21, 2023

In addition, "there will be a more expensive subscription that allows zero commercials," Musk stated.

That would represent a significant shift in Twitter's business model, which had previously depended on targeted advertising to generate money before launching a premium subscription service in mid-December.

However, advertising has recently become a source of concern for Twitter, following Musk's firing of over half of the company's 7,500-person workforce late last year. The move raised concerns that the firm was understaffed to handle content monitoring and frightened governments and advertisers.

#Twitter has been heading straight into the eye of a storm!
Twitter on Friday paused its recently announced $8 blue check subscription service as fake accounts rushed to impersonate politicians, companies, and even celebrities.#TwitterTakeover pic.twitter.com/IcvR51gyRA

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) November 13, 2022

Musk stated that his aim was to minimize costs while increasing revenue and that a new subscription service called Twitter Blue, which offers users a sought-after blue verification tick for a price, would help him achieve that goal.

According to a page on the company's website, the service costs $11 per month in the United States and is available on Apple's iOS and Google's Android mobile operating systems.

Web subscriptions are also available for $8 per month or $84 per year at a discount.

#Twitter has been heading straight into the eye of a storm!
Twitter on Friday paused its recently announced $8 blue check subscription service as fake accounts rushed to impersonate politicians, companies, and even celebrities.#TwitterTakeover pic.twitter.com/IcvR51gyRA

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) November 13, 2022

Twitter Blue is now available in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, and Japan.

With mass layoffs, the restoration of banned accounts, and the banning of journalists critical of the South African-born entrepreneur, Musk's Twitter has been riven by instability.

Musk's takeover also resulted in an increase in racist or offensive comments, prompting regulatory scrutiny and driving away big advertisers, Twitter's main source of revenue.

Read next: Media companies set 2023 content deals with Twitter

  • ad-free Twitter
  • Elon Musk
  • Twitter
  • Twitter Files

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