Instagram and Facebook owner Meta is rolling out its paid verification service in the UK.
The subscription service offered by Meta is comparable to “Twitter Blue,” the service gives Facebook and Instagram users a blue tick from £9.99 per month.
Users of Facebook and Instagram can sign up for Meta Verified.
In the US, Australia, and New Zealand, the feature is already available.
When it becomes available, those who registered interest in Meta Verified will be notified. In the following weeks, it will be made accessible to more people in the UK.
Those who have been approved by Meta will get a verified badge, which the technology firm says will provide them with additional protection against impersonation, in part because it will monitor their accounts to look for impersonators.
It says verified users will also get “access to a real person” if they have any issues with their account.
The company posted the announcement on the Meta Creators Community UK group, as social media consultant Matt Navarra noted. It was stated that the program was developed with feedback from emerging creators.
Meta is rolling out Meta Verified in the UK
Its paid membership plan for creators pic.twitter.com/kH26YUQJni
— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) May 16, 2023
Twitter verification
After Mr. Musk released the premium Twitter Blue subscription in November 2022, the change was made.
The service, which replaced a previous system in which blue ticks were used to verify that popular accounts belonged to the people they claimed to, caused controversy at the time.
On April 20, Mr. Musk removed what was later referred to as “legacy” verification ticks from account holders, leaving only those who had paid for Twitter Blue and verified their phone number qualified for the “verified” blue badge.
Later, Twitter decided to return blue ticks to several celebrities, governments, and organizations for free
A verification system for notable individuals already exists on Facebook and Instagram, and Meta doesn’t seem to be planning to do away with it very soon.
Users can still apply for a verified badge if they are “a public figure, celebrity, or brand and meet the account and eligibility requirements,” according to the support pages for the platforms and Meta Verified subscription.
Facebook and Instagram had previously both been free to use in all situations since they became well-known, but their choice to incorporate a paid-for verification system represents a change in approach.
The majority of Meta’s revenue, which supports the services, has come from advertising.
While both are still free to use, their decision of adding a paid tier that gives it more prominence represents an attempt to find other ways to monetize the platforms.
It comes six months after the company announced the loss of 11,000 jobs due to what it stated to be excessive pandemic-related spending.
At the time, Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, stated that although he predicted an increase in the company’s growth, it had not happened.
