Elon Musk's 'slight cost' Twitter post sparks free speech Vs profit debate
Elon Musk's latest post has added to the speculations on the direction where Twitter is headed since the billionaire got a $44 billion deal to own the micro-blogging platform.
FollowBillionaire Elon Musk has once again stirred the hornet's nest with his Twitter post in which he announced that the platform may charge a slight cost for commercial and government users. However, he clarified that Twitter will always be free for casual users.
The Twitter post triggered a wave of responses from users, some of whom were not thrilled with the idea of paying a fee. More so, Elon's latest move has added to the speculations on the direction where Twitter is headed since the billionaire got a $44 billion deal to own the micro-blogging platform.
Mind you, Twitter already offers a subscription-based service called Twitter Blue. According to Twitter, the subscription version 'offers enhanced and complementary features to the already existing Twitter experience for those who want it'. These include an 'undo' option which allows a user to take back his or her post within 30 seconds of posting.
Indications of what may be brewing inside Elon's mind were seen when during the Met Gala 2022, the Tesla founder-CEO told reporters that he wanted a much-bigger percentage of the country to engage in a dialogue on the platform rather than catering to a niche segment.
So when Elon tweeted that the downfall of the Freemasons was ultimately due to them giving away their stonecutting services for nothing, there were bound to be reactions.
One segment of users termed the idea as 'pathetic' and one that diluted the essence of Twitter. One user said Elon Musk's free-speech absolutism crumbles when it smashes up against his profit motive.
Meanwhile, another segment of users saw the brighter side of things. These users believe that if Twitter is worth using, then it is worth paying for. They also asked if companies could pay for e-mail services when why not Twitter?
Well, while rolling out the Twitter Blue service in Canada and Australia in June 2021, the platform had made it clear that 'a free Twitter is not going away, and never will.' Almost a year later, that may well not be the case.
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