Twitter begins removing blue checks from users who don't pay
San Francisco (US) (AP): This time it's for real.
Many of Twitter's high-profile users are losing the blue checks that helped verify their identity and distinguish them from impostors on the Elon Musk-owned social media platform.
After several false starts, Twitter began making good on its promise on Thursday to remove the blue checks from accounts that don't pay a monthly fee to keep them. Twitter had about 300,000 verified users under the original blue-check system many of them journalists, athletes and public figures. The checks which used to mean the account was verified by Twitter to be who it says it is began disappearing from these users' profiles late morning Pacific Time.
High-profile users who lost their blue checks on Thursday included Beyonc , Pope Francis, Oprah Winfrey and former President Donald Trump.
The costs of keeping the marks range from USD 8 a month for individual web users to a starting price of USD 1,000 monthly to verify an organisation, plus USD 50 monthly for each affiliate or employee account.
Twitter does not verify the individual accounts, as was the case with the previous blue check doled out during the platform's pre-Musk administration.
Celebrity users, from basketball star LeBron James to author Stephen King and Star Trek's William Shatner, have balked at joining although on Thursday, all three had blue checks indicating that the account paid for verification.
King, for one, said he hadn't paid.
"My Twitter account says I've subscribed to Twitter Blue. I haven't. My Twitter account says I've given a phone number. I haven't," King tweeted Thursday. "Just so you know."
In a reply to King's tweet, Musk said "You're welcome namaste" and in another tweet he said he's "paying for a few personally".
Singer Dionne Warwick tweeted earlier in the week that the site's verification system "is an absolute mess."
"The way Twitter is going anyone could be me now," Warwick said. She had earlier vowed not to pay for Twitter Blue, saying the monthly fee "could (and will) be going toward my extra hot lattes."
On Thursday, Warwick lost her blue check (which is actually a white check mark in a blue background).
For users who still had a blue check Thursday, a popup message indicated that the account "is verified because they are subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number." Verifying a phone number simply means that the person has a phone number and they verified that they have access to it it does not confirm the person's identity.
It wasn't just celebrities and journalists who lost their blue checks Thursday. Many government agencies, nonprofits and public-service accounts around the world found themselves no longer verified, raising concerns that Twitter could lose its status as a platform for getting accurate, up-to-date information from authentic sources, including in emergencies.
While Twitter offers gold checks for "verified organizations" and gray checks for government organisations and their affiliates, it's not clear how the platform doles these out and they were not seen Thursday on many previously verified agency and public service accounts.
The official Twitter account of the New York City government, which earlier had a blue check, tweeted on Thursday that "This is an authentic Twitter account representing the New York City Government This is the only account for @NYCGov run by New York City government" in an attempt to clear up confusion.
A newly created spoof account with 36 followers (also without a blue check), disagreed: "No, you're not. THIS account is the only authentic Twitter account representing and run by the New York City Government."
Soon, another spoof account purporting to be Pope Francis weighed in too: "By the authority vested in me, Pope Francis, I declare @NYC_GOVERNMENT the official New York City Government. Peace be with you."
Fewer than 5 per cent of legacy verified accounts appear to have paid to join Twitter Blue as of Thursday, according to an analysis by Travis Brown, a Berlin-based developer of software for tracking social media.
Musk's move has riled up some high-profile users and pleased some right-wing figures and Musk fans who thought the marks were unfair. But it is not an obvious money-maker for the social media platform that has long relied on advertising for most of its revenue.
Digital intelligence platform Similarweb analyzed how many people signed up for Twitter Blue on their desktop computers and only detected 116,000 confirmed sign-ups last month, which at
8 or
11 per month does not represent a major revenue stream. The analysis did not count accounts bought via mobile apps.
After buying San Francisco-based Twitter for
44 billion in October, Musk has been trying to boost the struggling platform's revenue by pushing more people to pay for a premium subscription. But his move also reflects his assertion that the blue verification marks have become an undeserved or "corrupt" status symbol for elite personalities, news reporters and others granted verification for free by Twitter's previous leadership.
Twitter began tagging profiles with a blue check mark starting about 14 years ago. Along with shielding celebrities from impersonators, one of the main reasons was to provide an extra tool to curb misinformation coming from accounts impersonating people. Most "legacy blue checks," including the accounts of politicians, activists and people who suddenly find themselves in the news, as well as little-known journalists at small publications around the globe, are not household names.
One of Musk's first product moves after taking over Twitter was to launch a service granting blue checks to anyone willing to pay
8 a month. But it was quickly inundated by impostor accounts, including those impersonating Nintendo, pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Musk's businesses Tesla and SpaceX, so Twitter had to temporarily suspend the service days after its launch.
The relaunched service costs USD 8 a month for web users and USD 11 a month for users of its iPhone or Android apps. Subscribers are supposed to see fewer ads, be able to post longer videos and have their tweets featured more prominently.
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Kohli hundred not enough as New Zealand clinch series with Indore win
Indore (PTI): Virat Kohli’s magnificent, combative century, forged with trademark resolve under mounting pressure, proved heartbreakingly insufficient as India slumped to their first-ever bilateral ODI series defeat at home against New Zealand, losing the decider by 41 runs at the Holkar Stadium here on Sunday.
Kohli’s 124 off 108 balls was a study in controlled aggression and steely temperament. The chase master shouldered the responsibility almost single-handedly, counter-punching a disciplined New Zealand attack with crisp drives, well-judged pulls and calculated risks over the ropes.
As wickets tumbled regularly at the other end, Kohli dug in, refusing to let the chase drift away, but once he fell late in the innings, India’s resistance finally collapsed at 296 in 46 overs while chasing a stiff 338.
The defeat not only handed New Zealand a 2-1 series win but also marked a historic first -- India had never before lost a home ODI series to the Kiwis.
It was a sobering evening for the hosts, made more poignant by the fact that one of their finest modern-day batters had delivered a near-perfect response to adversity.
Earlier, Daryl Mitchell's second consecutive hundred and Glenn Phillips' blistering century powered New Zealand to a competitive 337 for eight despite early jolts from India’s pace attack.
Mitchell (137) and Phillips (106) stitched together a 219-run partnership for the fourth wicket that turned the innings on its head.
Calm and authoritative, Mitchell anchored the stand while Phillips provided the momentum, allowing New Zealand to shift gears after a cautious start.
India were controlling the innings at one stage, having reduced the visitors to 58 for three but Mitchell and Phillips made it a contest.
Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh, brought in for Prasidh Krishna, made an immediate impact by removing Henry Nicholls (0) with a beauty in the opening over.
Coming closer to the off-stump, Arshdeep (3/63) shaped the ball away to perfection as Nicholls, caught in two minds, withdrew his bat late and saw the delivery take the inside edge and crash into the leg-stump.
Arshdeep and fellow seamer Harshit Rana (3/84) hit the deck hard and extracted just enough movement to keep the New Zealand batters under check early on.
The visitors managed only 47 runs in the first 10 overs, losing both openers cheaply. Harshit dismissed Devon Conway (5) for the third straight time, inducing an edge with a back-of-a-length delivery that was safely taken in the slips.
Will Young (30) attempted to break the shackles with a six over deep backward point off Harshit but the bowler had the last laugh.
Harshit broke the 53-run stand between Young and Mitchell when the former cut firmly to the right of Ravindra Jadeja at backward point, where the Indian all-rounder took a comfortable catch.
Mitchell once again set the tone for New Zealand’s recovery by taking on Kuldeep Yadav early, launching the left-arm wrist-spinner for a towering six.
In reply, India’s chase began shakily. Rohit Sharma fell early for 11, caught by Kristian Clarke off Zak Foulkes, and Shubman Gill was dismissed for 23 by Kyle Jamieson, leaving India two down inside seven overs.
Kohli immediately set about rebuilding the innings with purpose.
Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul failed to provide support, departing cheaply as India slipped to 71 for four.
Kohli, however, remained unflustered, rotating strike efficiently and punishing loose deliveries. His partnership with Nitish Kumar Reddy (53 off 57 balls) revived India’s hopes, with the duo adding valuable runs through intelligent placement rather than reckless hitting.
Even as required rate climbed, Kohli continued to attack selectively, reaching his century that drew loud applause from the Indore crowd.
Harshit Rana’s late cameo of 52 off 43 balls briefly reignited hopes, but the asking rate proved too steep. Kohli’s dismissal at 292 for nine -- caught by Daryl off Kristian Clarke -- sealed India’s fate.
As New Zealand celebrated a landmark triumph on Indian soil, Kohli walked off to a standing ovation, his innings a lone beacon on a night of collective disappointment for the hosts.
For the visitors, it was a moment to savour -- a historic series win achieved through composure, power and belief. For India, it's a reminder that even home dominance can crumble despite individual brilliance.
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