Meta rolls out a blue-check subscription as social biggies look beyond ads for fresh cash
I'm blue da ba dee da ba da.… Meta launched a subscription service (dubbed: Meta Verified) in hopes of turning blue checks into big bucks. Starting this week, Facebook and Instagram users can pay $12/month on the web (or $15/month on iOS) to gain the coveted blue check mark (after providing a government ID). The Netflix-priced roll-out will kick off in Australia and New Zealand, but other countries are expected to join soon.
- Big guards: CEO Zuckerberg says the service is about “increasing authenticity and security” and that subscribers will get extra protection against fake accounts.
- Small print: To start, Meta Verified badges won’t be available for businesses, but accounts that already have a blue check won’t have to pay to keep it — yet.
Déjà blue… Big tech has scrambled to find fresh revenue as the ad-pocalypse hits profits. Meanwhile, the clamor for social-media clout has created a multimillion-dollar black market for verification (users have spent thousands of $$ for blue-check status). Now Meta’s joining other social titans like Twitter, Reddit, and Snap in launching its own (official) VIP badge service. But results so far have varied:
- Twitter’s Blue subscription, which starts at $8/month, has reportedly attracted fewer than 300K subscribers (less than 1% of its total users).
- Snap’s Snapchat+, which offers features like exclusive badges and story-rewatch counts, has gained 2M+ paid subscribers just over six months after launching.
This is Meta’s anti-Meta move… After burning through billions of dollars on its floundering metaverse ambitions, Meta’s going back to basics to recoup some cash. It’s a boring move, but it aligns with Meta’s new “efficiency” focus. While verified subscriptions could help combat fake accounts, they could also make Meta less accountable in building trust free of charge.