Twitter will roll out gray ‘Official’ badge for prominent accounts

NEW DELHI: As Elon Musk enters top gear in making Twitter profitable, the company on Wednesday said it will roll out another verification badge to help users understand which account is real and which one is fake, as most of them will soon have a blue verification tick after paying $8.

Esther Crawford, head of the new Twitter Blue service, said that select accounts related to governments, companies or public figures will get a gray "Official" check mark to separate them from other users.

"A lot of folks have asked about how you'll be able to distinguish between @TwitterBlue subscribers with blue check marks and accounts that are verified as official, which is why we're introducing the "Official" label to select accounts when we launch," she said in a tweet.

Not all previously verified accounts will get the "Official" label and the label is not available for purchase.

"Accounts that will receive it include government accounts, commercial companies, business partners, major media outlets, publishers and some public figures," Crawford explained.

She also said that the new Twitter Blue does not include ID verification.

"It is an opt-in, paid subscription that offers a blue checkmark and access to select features. We'll continue to experiment with ways to differentiate between account types," Crawford said.

Twitter's revamped Blue subscription service for $8 will not affect the existing verified accounts as of now, and is applicable to those who seek Blue Badge as well as new users who wish to be verified.

The original plan for the new Blue plan was that users who are already verified should also pay or lose their Blue Badges after 90 days.

The new Twitter Blue service comes with fewer ads, search priority, an ability to post longer videos, and a blue badge.

Musk has confirmed that the new Twitter Blue subscription service for $8 will be available in India in less than a month.