Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, has announced a new paid subscription for its platforms that will, among other features, enable users to pay for verified accounts.
In a Sunday morning Facebook post, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, made the service, which is called “Meta Verified.” He said that the move is about “increasing authenticity and security across our services.”
ABC News reported that Zuckerberg added that subscribers who subscribe through an internet browser would pay $11.99 for the service, while Meta iOS app purchasers would pay $14.99.
Related News Meta, Amazon, and Twitter employees are being laid off by Salesforce. Meta was fined €390 million for data breaches in the EU. Facebook gave Nigerian advertisers until tomorrow to update their VAT records. The announcement came at a time when other social media companies are trying to cut costs and increase revenue. For example, Telegram, Snapchat, and Twitter all launched their own services with varying features.
In order to become “a leaner and more efficient company,” Zuckerberg stated, Meta announced its third consecutive quarter of revenue declines this month and laid off 11,000 employees—13 percent of its workforce—in November.
Meta stated that the service would provide subscribers with “extra impersonation protection,” direct access to a live support agent for account issues, and increased reach and visibility on the platform in addition to a blue verification badge on profiles.
In addition, subscribers must be at least 18 years old, have a government ID that matches their profile name and photo, and have previously posted.
Meta’s announcement comes after Elon Musk, CEO of Twitter, launched a similar service called Twitter Blue. Twitter Blue allows users to pay for a verification check and will eventually give comments and searches priority to tweets from verified users. Musk also said he would gradually get rid of Twitter’s old verification system, which required users to be famous.
However, a flood of fake accounts overwhelmed Twitter Blue’s rollout, forcing the company to temporarily disable the verification feature.
A few weeks later, it was relaunched, and in the end, Twitter made it impossible for users to alter aspects of their profiles or risk losing their verification checks in order to prevent impersonators. To become verified, users of Twitter Blue do not need to submit a government-issued ID.
The picture, name, and username of a new Meta Verified subscriber cannot be changed “without going through the Meta Verified subscription and verifications application process again.”
According to Meta, “no changes will be made to Instagram and Facebook accounts that are already verified based on prior requirements, including authenticity and notability.”
Before going global, the new service will begin its launch this week with a gradual test to “learn what’s most valuable.”
Zuckerberg stated, “We’ll be rolling out in Australia and New Zealand this week, and more countries soon.”