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Elon Musk is reducing the number of messages Twitter users can send in a controversial effort to crack down on spam bots.
Millions of non-paying Twitter users will soon be banned from messaging those who don’t follow them in a massive update coming this week.
The billionaire’s CEO announced the change yesterday, highlighting that the lines between scams and real people on the platform were becoming increasingly blurred.
Twitter also recently enforced a 500-message-per-day limit to create divisiveness as a way of relieving “some of the tension…behind the scenes.”
Musk tweeted, “Hopefully the update comes out this week. As I’ve said many times, it’s getting harder and harder to differentiate between AI bots. Soon it will be impossible.
Non-paying Twitter users should not message verified users first, says Elon Musk
Yesterday, Elon Musk announced the change that is expected to take effect this week
“The only ‘social networks’ that survive are those that require authentication. The payment system is a means of verification that increases bot costs by ~10,000x.”
Twitter Blue, the paid subscription service, costs £100.80 ($84) each year for web users and £114.99 ($114.99) for iPhone users.
The ability to message non-followers will be limited to paying users only in the future, with this feature extending to creating group chats as well.
While some have praised these efforts against bots, others warn that it could create a barrier between those who can afford to pay for Twitter and those who cannot.
Critics suggest this defeats Twitter’s goal of becoming an open “digital city plaza” — a goal Musk stated following his acquisition last year.
One user said, “Twitter isn’t quite ready to be a worthy $8 a month service just yet.
‘That certainly confuses the dynamics of the entire village square. Maybe one day, but there is still a lot to gain. Online games have the same problem: the bots are willing to pay to play.’
Another added: “This would make it totally impossible for non-blue people to DM each other on Twitter. Better solution: allow if both DM each other (or have done in the past), that way we can exchange twitter handles (via another medium) and set up communication.’
The change also comes amid speculation that the DM 500 daily limit will be further reduced for non-paying users in the coming future.
This was suggested by tech leaker Alessandro Paluzzi after he received a notification warning him about his daily limit.
Critics suggest this runs counter to the idea of Twitter becoming an open “digital town square” — a goal Musk stated following his acquisition last year
“#Twitter is working to limit the number of DMs you can send per day before you have to sign up for @Twitter Blue,” he wrote.
“Currently the limit is 500 per day, but I bet this limit will be lowered when this rolls out.”
The rumor mill polarized countless users on the platform, debating whether this was the right way to handle spam.
How is this going to improve Twitter? Australians and New Zealanders STILL have issues with gifs,” one user wrote.
My art account has been closed for no reason. Maybe fix basic Twitter before making changes that are not wanted or needed!!’
Meanwhile, another said, “Companies that have a large number of customers who provide customer support via DMs need to be verified to send a lot of direct messages.”
Encrypted messaging and cleaning of old conversations are some of the many other changes made to the app in recent months.
But Jake Moore, a cybersecurity expert at ESET, believes that too many changes could end up driving loyal fans away.
The change also comes amid speculation that the 500 daily message limit will be further reduced for non-paying users in the coming future
The rumored buzz seemed to polarize many users on the platform debating whether this was the right way to handle spam
He previously told MailOnline, “Twitter’s competitors are already preoccupied with encrypted messaging and voice and video chat functionality, so this is the next obvious step.
As the numbers go, names like Meta, Snap, and TikTok dominate Twitter, and so in order to recoup some of the losses incurred in purchasing the site, Musk needs to align the platform as a better rival.
However, too many changes can have the opposite effect and drive away more loyal fans, as we’ve seen before. Many other sites similar to Twitter, such as BlueSky and Mastadon, are just waiting on the sidelines for users to migrate over.
“So Musk will have to be careful not to spoil the essence of what made the platform what it is today.”