Mark Zuckerberg Announces Paid Service For Facebook & IG Similar To Twitter

Mark Zuckerberg says that Meta is launching a paid service for Facebook and Instagram, noticeably similar to the Twitter Blue service that Elon Musk recently went forth with. The subscription will cost $11.99 per month on web browsers or $14.99 per month on iOS. Zuckerberg made the announcement on his Instagram Story, on Sunday.

"Good morning and new product announcement: this week we're starting to roll out Meta Verified -- a subscription service that lets you verify your account with a government ID, get a blue badge, get extra impersonation protection against accounts claiming to be you, and get direct access to customer support. This new feature is about increasing authenticity and security across our services. Meta Verified starts at $11.99 / month on web or $14.99 / month on iOS. We'll be rolling out in Australia and New Zealand this week and more countries soon."

A spokesperson for Meta confirmed to CNN that the company will shift the emphasis of the blue badge to authenticity in order to verify more people. “We are evolving the meaning of the blue badge to focus on authenticity so we can expand verification access to more people,” the Meta spokesperson said. “We will display follower count in more places so people can distinguish which accounts are notable public figures among accounts that share the same name.”

Elon Musk launched a similar idea for Twitter back in December. While the service has undergone many changes since then, it costs $11 a month for iOS and Android subscribers. Discord, Reddit, and YouTube are other social media platforms to offer similar subscription-based features.

Unlike Twitter, Meta users looking for verification will have to submit government IDs and match them up to their own profile. This will hopefully prevent the spread of fake accounts posing as celebrities, as has been a problem on Musk's site. Musk responded to the Meta news on Twitter, Sunday, while reacting to a meme that implied Zuckerberg is cheating off of Musk's ideas. He also described the decision by Meta as "Inevitable." Musk purchased Twitter for $44 billion, last year.

[Via]