Twitter announced earlier today, March 24, 2023 that it will remove the blue badge known as the legacy verified checkmarks from the old accounts as a means to get uniform registration for all new carriers of the newly subscribed badge.
“On April 1st, we will begin winding down our legacy verified program and removing legacy verified checkmarks. To keep your blue checkmark on Twitter, individuals can sign up for Twitter Blue…” the platform tweeted adding subscription links for individuals who opted for the premium service.
Twitter owner, Elon Musk introduced the Twitter blue concept shortly after he took ownership of the platform as a means to raise more funds and increase the platform's financial source.
The verified accounts were first introduced by Twitter in 2009 as a means to help users identify real and authentic accounts of celebrities, politicians, companies and brands, news organizations and other accounts.
After the acquisition, Musk described Twitter’s old system of verification as “corrupt” thus opening up the ‘elitist’ blue checkmarks to any paying customer.
This was seen as a means to democratize the status symbol, and also, a means for Musk to generate a much-needed new revenue stream for the platform. The service according to the platform, would cost eight dollars per month via the web and $ 11 per month through the in-app payment on iOS and Android.
Twitter Blue will be offered as a premium service for subscribers who would get more exciting offers like access to features like the ‘Edit Tweet’ button, undo tweets, the ability to post longer and high-quality videos and prioritised rankings in conversation.