Twitter, on Thursday, announced the launch of its first-ever subscription service designed for power users willing to pay a monthly fee for exclusive features. It’s the organization’s first endeavor at a subscription business model and could broaden Twitter’s income streams. As of now, advertising makes up over 86% of Twitter’s income.
As soon as the announcement of ‘Twitter Blue’ hit the Wall Street, shares of Twitter went up by 2%.
Twitter Blue will be exclusive to Australia and Canada for now and will have subscription rates of $4.49 and $3.49 respectively, in local currencies per month. The organization didn’t say when Twitter Blue will open up for U.S. clients. The company did say that the limited launch is designed to “gain a deeper understanding” of the user’s desires. Twitter said the new subscription was not designed to undermine the free experience, but to offer “enhanced and complementary” features “for those who want it”
Now, what are the perks of Twitter Blue? Well, the most intriguing perk is that users who subscribe to the service will be able to undo their tweets. Other advantages include:
- customizable app icons for phone home screens and what it calls “fun color themes” for the app.
- they will also have access to “dedicated” customer support, the company says.
The additional features that Twitter says were inspired by user requests include:
- Bookmark folders, designed to help users organize saved tweets more easily
- Undo tweet, which will let users set a timer of up to 30 seconds after posting before it appears publicly – to allow quick correction of obvious mistakes
- Reader mode, which turns long threads of tweets into easier-to-read text
Twitter, in conclusion, said “We will be listening to feedback and building out even more features and perks for our subscribers over time”
