In a statement issued by the social media giant on Wednesday, October 18, 2023, owner Elon Musk said the move is intended to reduce spam, manipulation on the platform, and bot activity.
“Starting today, we’re testing a new programme (Not A Bot) in New Zealand and the Philippines. New, unverified accounts will be required to sign up for a $1 annual subscription to be able to post and interact with other posts. Within this test, existing users are not affected,” the statement read in part.
It further read, “This new test was developed to bolster our already successful efforts to reduce spam, manipulation of our platform, and bot activity while balancing platform accessibility with the small fee amount. It is not a profit driver. And so far, subscription options have proven to be the main solution that works at scale.”
“New users who opt out of subscribing will only be able to take “read only” actions, such as read posts, watch videos, and follow accounts.”