Over the weekend, some notable accounts tweeted that their blue verification ticks have been restored even though they did not pay for the ticks. On April 21 2023, Twitter suspended the legacy blue verification tick for those who did not pay the $8 subscription fee.
Three people – William Shatner, Lebron James and Stephen King – did not lose their verification tick after the deadline for payment and as they wondered why, Elon Musk tweeted that he paid for them even though they did not ask him to do so.
There was more confusion over the weekend when some other people noticed that their verification ticks had been reinstated without their knowledge. Some of these people include Neil Gaiman and footballer Riyad Mahrez. Even some famous dead people like Michael Jackson, Chadwick Boseman, Barbara Walters, Paul Walkers, and Kobe Bryant had their blue ticks reinstated.
In Nigeria, accounts reinstated include billionaires Tony Elumelu and Aliko Dangote; popular singers Davido, Wizkid, and Tiwa Savage; and top politicians President-elect, Bola Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, and Peter Obi
Elon Musk has not formally stated why these accounts were reinstated but it would seem that these celebrities were not willing to pay the $8 monthly subscription and he would lose them if he continued with the suspension. It also seems that Elon Musk only reinstated accounts with over one million followers.
There are some questions that begs answers:
- Is Elon Musk paying for all these people that were reinstated?
- Will it continue forever?
- Is it legal to subscribe these people without their consent?
- Can these people sue Elon Musk for illegal subscription?
- Is it fair to those who willingly paid for their subscription before Elon Musk gave a blanket reinstatement for these celebrities?
We expect things to be clearer in the coming days…Watch this space
