Elon Musk Could Have A New Way To Increase Twitter's Revenue: What It Is And How It Could Jazz Up Your Social Media Presence

Social media platform Twitter has undergone several changes since a new owner took over in 2022. Now, a new plan could see the company selling off an account-related item for the first time.

What Happened: Tesla CEO Elon Musk has pushed for changes and to increase revenue at Twitter since acquiring the social media platform for $44 billion in 2022.

Twitter could sell off usernames of old accounts via online auctions, according to a report from The New York Times.

Sources say talks have been in the works since December to sell off usernames.

The report follows comments from Musk that he wanted to free up 1.5 billion usernames by eliminating inactive accounts.

Twitter will soon start freeing the name space of 1.5 billion accounts

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 9, 2022

“These are obvious account deletions with no tweets & no log in for years,” Musk also tweeted.

Musk’s tweets prompted concerns over inactive accounts that belonged to people who have since passed away, and if the accounts could stay as a tribute of sorts.

A list of potential usernames has not been released by Twitter or Musk, but will attract a lot of attention when it is released.

Related Link: Elon Musk's Reasons For Buying Twitter, 'I Didn't Do It To make Money, I Did It To Try To Help Humanity' 

Why It’s Important: The big question will be how valuable the 1.5 billion usernames are. The inactive accounts could include one-word usernames, people’s names and potential brands, which could be valuable to the right owner.

Twitter usernames are free to create but have to be unique, which means some people may not be able to get their preferred account and have to use something less memorable or identifiable.

Twitter does not allow usernames to be bought or sold between users or through marketplaces. While it has not been reported or said by Musk, there is the possibility that Twitter could eventually allow transactions of usernames and take a cut of the payments as a new source of revenue.

Internet domains have become popular over the years as a way for people to anticipate demand and can be resold on marketplaces.

Ethereum Name Service ENS/USD domains also became popular in the world of cryptocurrency and NFTs with users buying up .eth domains of celebrities and brands in hopes they could sell them for top dollar. Addresses for companies like Samsung, Apple and Amazon attracted huge bids and sales. 

Limited supply of three-digit domain names also became highly valuable to collectors and those looking for a unique Ethereum ETH/USD address.

If the reported plan by Musk to sell off old usernames comes to fruition, it won't be the company's first auction to unload old items. In January, Twitter sold old kitchen equipment, furniture and memorabilia through an auction.

Read Next: How To Buy ENS Domains 

Photo: courtesy of Shutterstock.