Twitter surveys users about potential features for its subscription service such as undoing sent tweets and customizing profiles
- Twitter confirmed it is exploring a subscription model for its platform
- The firm is now surveying users to see what features they are willing to pay for
- This includes undoing sent tweets and customizing profiles
- There could also be a service specifically for recruiters to find new employees
Twitter recently confirmed the addition of a subscription platform and is surveying its members to determine what features are worth a fee.
A tweet surfaced on the platform showing a number of features that could be part of the paid model, including a 30-second window to undo tweets and profile customization.
The survey asks users to select features they believe are most important and those considered to be least significant.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey affirmed plans for the service last month in a call conference call with analysts, saying ‘you will likely see some tests this year’ of new revenue-generating approaches on the Twitter platform.’
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Twitter recently confirmed the addition of a subscription platform and is surveying its members to determine what features are worth an extra fee. A tweet surfaced on the platform showing a number of features that could be part of the paid model, including a 30 second window to undo tweets and profile customization.
Until now, Twitter has offered a free service — creating revenue instead by enabling other firms to purchase targeted ads deployed to appropriate sections of the platform’s millions-strong user base.
However, the platform’s advertising income has suffered financially from both the effects of coronavirus pandemic and from recent advertising boycotts linked to the racial justice protests in the United States.
‘We want to make sure any new line of revenue is complementary to our advertising business,’ Dorsey said in July, according to CNN Business.
‘We do think there is a world where subscription is complementary, where commerce is complementary, where helping people manage paywalls […] is complementary.’
Rumors of a potential subscription model first surfaced when a job posting went live on Twitter’s main site. The listing said the firm was working on a subscription platform dubbed ‘Gryphon’ and is looking for engineers to help with the development
The survey asks users to select features they believe are most important and those considered to be least significant
Twitter user Andrew Roth shared a snapshot of the survey, which reveals a number of features available in the subscription model, as first reported on by The Verge.
Users could undo sent tweets, customize profiles with different colors, links and icons, publish videos up to five times longer and there is also an option for recruiters to find potential employees on the site.
There is also a possibility of paying to see few or no ads on the platform, which has been the main source of revenue for Twitter.
Rumors of a potential subscription model first surfaced when a job posting went live on Twitter’s main site.
The listing said the firm was working on a subscription platform dubbed ‘Gryphon’ and is looking for engineers to help with the development.
‘We are building a subscription platform, one that can be reused by other teams in the future,’ reads the listing.
‘This is a first for Twitter! Gryphon is a team of web engineers who are closely collaborating with the Payments team and the Twitter.com team.’
‘We are looking for a full-stack engineer to lead the Payment and Subscription client work.’
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey affirmed plans for the service last month in a call conference call with analysts, saying ‘you will likely see some tests this year’ of new revenue-generating approaches on the Twitter platform’
The company briefly edited the job listing to remove references to ‘Gryphon’ and the ‘subscription platform’.
Twitter declined to comment on the reason behind the temporary changes.
The job posting was enough to spark a fury among Twitter’s users, as many oppose the idea of having to pay to use the app.
One user said: ‘The day I pay for a Twitter subscription is the day I start supporting Trump.’
Others believe the move may be the end of Twitter and some hope the fee would be for new users joining the site.