Elon Musk has indicated that corporations and governments may soon have to pay a "slight cost" to use Twitter, CNBC reports. This comes only weeks after declaring his intention to purchase the social media network for $44 billion.
The tech tycoon, who also serves as CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, emphasized in a late-Tuesday tweet that the site will remain free for "casual users."
Twitter will always be free for casual users, but maybe a slight cost for commercial/government users
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 3, 2022
It's unclear how much Musk wants to charge corporations and governments, or whether certain organizations, including as non-profits and journalists, will be excluded from any levies that are imposed.
Twitter has struggled to produce anywhere near as much money as other social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube throughout the years.
Musk, who has 90.7 million followers on Twitter, has previously stated that he wants to "make Twitter better than ever by expanding the product with new features."
Twitter is already testing a premium membership service called Twitter Blue in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, which includes extra functionality.
Users may undo tweets and bookmark tweets with the premium option, which costs $2.99 per month in the United States. Musk stated last month that he intends to lower the price of Twitter Blue and make modifications to the service, including a prohibition on advertisements.
In addition, Musk has stated that all Twitter direct communications should be end-to-end encrypted so that no one can eavesdrop on or hack a user's chats.
Musk stated at the annual Met Gala on Monday that Twitter must also get rid of the bots, trolls, and frauds that exist on the network.
"We don't want people getting tricked out of their money and that kind of thing," he stated.