X to Begin Charging New Users ‘Small Fee’ as a Result of Bots

X (formally Twitter) is said to begin rolling out a new policy which will see new users charged “a small fee” to post, like, and reply.

Owner of the platform Elon Musk says that the policy is “the only way to curb the relentless onslaught of bots,” in a response post. Musk responded to X Daily News, which reported that X may be expanding its policy to charge new users to interact on the platform. Previously, the policy only affected new users in New Zealand and the Philippines.

However, due to an increase in bots and spam accounts, it appears as though X will be expanding the policy. Changes made to the policy were published on April 15th. It states, “New accounts are required to pay a small annual fee before you’re able to post, like, bookmark, and reply.” Moreover, “This is to reduce spam and create a better experience for everyone. You can still follow accounts and browse X for free.”

Unfortunately, a small fee for new user write access is the only way to curb the relentless onslaught of bots.

Current AI (and troll farms) can pass “are you a bot” with ease.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 15, 2024

In New Zealand and the Phillippines, new users would need to pay a fee when interacting with the platform. However, after three months, that fee would be lifted and write actions would become free. While the updated policy fails to touch on this subject, Musk does confirm that’ll be the case elsewhere.

For the past year, bot accounts have plagued X, becoming more common in replies and DMs. Musk claims that “Current AI (and troll farms) can pass “are you a bot” with ease.” What remains unclear is how the new policy will directly impact the number of bots and spam accounts on X. While there is certainly a chance it could dissuade some spammers from creating multiple accounts, it’ll definitely stop some authentic users from signing up in the first place.

In New Zealand, the new user fee is $1.75 NZD. If the policy does come to Canada, users can expect to pay roughly $1.42 CAD for similar services within that three-month window. However, there’s no word on if or when X’s latest policy change will impact new Canadian users.