News

Twitter Plans To Charge $19.99 Per Month For Verification

After acquiring the social media platform for $44 billion, Elon Musk has issued a deadline to introduce a paid verification scheme.

Published

2 years ago

October 31, 2022

Nour Nasir

twitter plans to charge $19.99 per month for verification

Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

In one of his first directives since the takeover, Elon Musk aims to change Twitter Blue, the optional $4.99 per month subscription service, into a more expensive add-on that verifies users with the familiar blue check mark.

If the current plan goes ahead, users will have 90 days to upgrade to the new monthly fee or lose their existing verification completely. Musk has made plenty of noise about revamping Twitter over the last few months and is rumored to have issued a November 7th deadline for this particular change, with employees facing being fired if the feature isn’t in place by that date.

Twitter’s new owner has been in charge for less than a week so far, but has already changed the site’s homepage. When logged-out users visit the root domain, they are redirected to the Explore page that shows trending tweets and the latest news stories. The outspoken Tesla founder is planning mass layoffs of Twitter middle managers and engineers who haven’t recently contributed to the site’s codebase, with cuts expected to begin happening this week.

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The original Twitter Blue subscription launched almost a year ago as a way to view articles without ads, as well as giving subscribers an undo function for Tweets. The service hasn’t been particularly popular, and ad revenue still constitutes the vast majority of the platform’s revenue.

Musk is keen to grow the subscription model to the point where it accounts for half of Twitter’s revenue — let’s see how the controversial Tesla CEO fares over the coming months.

News

1,000 Drones Light The Dubai Sky For AC Milan Celebration

Cyberdrone’s groundbreaking display marked 125 years of AC Milan football club and the 1st-year anniversary of Casa Milan Dubai.

Published

11 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Nour Nasir

Cyberdrone, a leading UAV display company based in Dubai, put on a breathtaking drone light show on Monday to honor two significant football milestones: AC Milan’s 125th anniversary and the one-year anniversary of Casa Milan Dubai.

The spectacle involved 1,000 drones working in perfect harmony to project AC Milan’s iconic imagery against the city’s night sky. Highlights included the UAVs synchronizing to form the club’s iconic crest, the signature red and black jersey, and a special emblem marking its 125th year. The intricate performance demanded meticulous planning, not just in terms of choreography, but also in dealing with the necessary permits and logistics.

cyberdrone ac milan dubai

“Our goal was to spotlight AC Milan’s legacy through a stunning visual narrative,” explained Mohamed Munjed Abdulla, Director of Sales at Cyberdrone. “We celebrated the club’s history, its Dubai milestone, and the universal love for football. The show also enhanced AC Milan’s regional presence, growing its fanbase through a cutting-edge, memorable experience. Drone shows are unparalleled in leaving lasting impressions, making them perfect for driving partnerships and growth”.

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Greta Nardeschi, AC Milan’s Regional Director for MENA, echoed the sentiment, adding: “Collaborating with Cyberdrone for this 1,000-drone performance allowed us to connect with our fans in innovative ways. It gave us a unique opportunity to surprise and inspire audiences while elevating our Club’s visibility and that of our partners. Cyberdrone truly helped us take AC Milan to new heights”.

This groundbreaking drone display sets a new benchmark for the Middle East’s sports sector, which already contributes around $2.4 billion annually to Dubai’s GDP alone. Sporting events also generate $1.76 billion in revenues across the region, while the MENA’s entertainment sector, valued at $41.13 billion, is growing at 9.41% annually, driven by rapid technological advancements.