The controversial $8-a-month Twitter Blue subscription appears to have either been paused or canceled altogether because people who’ve paid for the service have taken to the platform saying their blue checkmark has suddenly disappeared. On top of that, the subscription service is no longer available in the iOS app, as confused social media users await an update from Elon Musk himself regarding the issue.
It’s not clear why Twitter Blue has been pulled from the social app, but in recent days, Elon had received a heap of backlash as countless accounts with the blue checkmark had begun impersonating other celebrities and writing tweets to seem as if they were written on their behalf.
The chaos continues. Twitter pulls the plug on Twitter Blue, subscriptions and paid-for verification blue checkmark no longer available.
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) November 11, 2022
A Twitter account impersonating Lebron James on Wednesday tweeted that the NBA star was requesting a trade from the Lakers, sending fans into a frenzy as the tweet went on to amass tens of thousands of likes. Other celebrities have become victims of the issue as well, including baseball star Aroldis Chapman, and politician Ted Cruz, whose viral tweet read that he enjoyed feasting on human flesh.
Per The Verge, trying to access the Twitter Blue subscription page is now said to be pulling up errors, preventing people from buying the monthly service. The publication notes, “You could previously subscribe to Twitter Blue from the sidebar in the iOS app (the service has yet to launch for Android users), but users this morning reported that the option has disappeared.”
“For those for whom the link is still available, trying to sign up only returns an error message. “Thank you for your interest!” it reads. “Twitter Blue will be available in your country in the future. Please check back later.”
In recent days, Elon had fired back at people who were against the idea of allowing everyone willing to pay $8 a month to have a “verified” blue checkmark next to their name, with many saying it would cause a lot of confusion, as seen with the recent mishaps that have already occurred on the social media platform.
Twitter Blue with verification tick is no longer available for purchase. pic.twitter.com/VlLz2wcBUz
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) November 11, 2022
The tech mogul stood his ground, saying that he was not going to be doing a U-turn on his plans to welcome the feature to everyone, having previously said that in order to turn Twitter into a profitable business, several changes needed to take place, and this was one of them.
So far, the subscription service has not fared well with Twitter users, and seeing that the service is now no longer accessible, it would seem as if Elon may have had some second thoughts about the fast-paced launch of the feature after all.