What 'Black Swan' Author Thinks of Elon Musk's Twitter Subscription Plans? Hint: No, He's Not Criticizing

Elon Musk‘s plan to monetize blue check and other features by launching a paid subscription model, Twitter Blue, invited heavy criticism, but “The Black Swan” author seems to disagree. 

What Happened: Nassim Nicholas Taleb, a Lebanese-American options trader and strategist who is known for his book “The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable” took to Twitter to share his views about why Musk’s decision to charge $8 per month for Blue subscription is the right way to go. 

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Taleb said, “Charging for Twitter should bring cash flow and eliminate NOISE,” adding that this approach would bring “independence from advertisers.”

He further said that “other social media outlets” will need to follow the same approach “in the post zero interest rate era.”

It is pertinent to note that Meta Platforms Inc. META has also rolled out a subscription service for Facebook and Instagram users. 

Why It’s Important: Last year, Musk’s plans to monetize blue badges left many people fuming, including author Stephen King. 

On Tuesday, Musk announced that non-Blue subscribers will not be “eligible to be in For You recommendations” starting April 15. Additionally, only verified accounts will be able to vote on the platform. 

Earlier, it was reported that, as of mid-January 2023, about 180K people in the U.S. are paying for subscriptions to the site, including Twitter Blue subscribers — less than 0.2% of monthly active users.

Travis Brown, a software developer in Berlin, also said that the Twitter Blue subscriber count “hasn’t even doubled” a month after relaunch.  

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