Twitter users to start losing blue ticks from next month - unless they pay
Many verified Twitter users are set to lose their blue ticks at the beginning of next month.
The social media platform has said that on 1 April it will start removing its "legacy" verified checkmarks.
These cover most blue-tick accounts that are not government officials or organisations - meaning many musicians, actors, journalists, authors, among others, will lose their tick.
The blue ticks confirm that an account is verified by Twitter.
Twitter boss Elon Musk had previously vowed to remove legacy blue ticks, reportedly saying they were handed out in a "corrupt and nonsensical" way.
In order to keep their ticks, accounts will have to subscribe to Twitter Blue, which has a monthly fee of up to £11 for those based in the UK.
Business accounts may also subscribe to Twitter Verified Organisations, which means they can add gold checkmarks to their accounts.
However, the subscription service would cost them a base price of £950 a month.
Announcing the move, Twitter said it will "begin winding down our legacy verified programme".
'Absolutely no way this won't backfire'
Verified Twitter users joked about the announcement, particularly the decision to start removing the ticks on April Fool's Day.
"They're eliminating legacy verified on April Fool's Day, absolutely no way this won't backfire," civil rights lawyer Alejandra Caraballo said.
American screenwriter Mark Royce joked about Twitter's reminder that legacy verified accounts "may or may not be notable".
"Since verified checks will be taken away on April Fool's Day (not at all a confusing day to do that), I want to provide closure for my many superfans who have puzzled over one mystery for months," he wrote.
"The answer is no. This account is not, in fact, notable. Godspeed".
Ariel Dumas, head writer for The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, joked: "Please rid me of this plague. My verified check has made me too rich and famous.
"I get stopped at stores. My large adult sons are tired of fighting off my hordes of fans, chasing me with their chants of 'blue check blue check'."
Mr Musk faced a backlash over the rollout of the paid-for verification feature after it led to a number of fake accounts buying verification and then posing as public figures to spread abusive content.
The multibillionaire acquired Twitter last October as part of a $44bn (£36bn) deal, and quickly earned criticism after he fired top executives at the company.
