Twitter and Elon Musk appear to have resolved their long-standing love-hate relationship. Prior to the Friday deadline to finalize the contract to acquire the social media network, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took control of Twitter and sacked its senior executives.
According to reports, among others, Musk fired former Twitter CEO Parag Agarwal, CFO Ned Segal, and Vijaya Gadde, the director of legal, policy, and trust.
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He also gathered over the weekend with trusted friends and advisors to discuss the best ways to transform the service he recently paid $44 billion for, Twitter, and is likely to name new product leadership inside the company.
He also recently informed everyone that he is also going to be the new CEO of Twitter. Not only this, but it seems that he is going to shake up the whole structure and terms of the well-known micro-blogging platform.
According to a recent report, Elon Musk has confirmed that he is considering charging a $20 fee for Twitter Blue verification. However, this news doesn’t go down well with many Twitter users. Among them is the well-known author, Stephen King.
He recently took to Twitter to voice his displeasure over this recent announcement. Nevertheless, the new Twitter chief seems unaffected by it.
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The chat between the famous novelist and the internet mogul has gained both friends and opponents.
Elon Musk vs Stephen King over blue to tick on Twitter
After Stephen King attacked his idea, Elon Musk defended his plan to charge for a Twitter verification badge. However, the owner of Twitter did agree to lower the price for a valuable blue tick from the earlier-proposed $20 per month to $8.
Taking to Twitter, celebrated author Stephen King wrote,
“$20 a month to keep my blue check? Fuck that, they should pay me. If that gets instituted, I’m gone like Enron.”
$20 a month to keep my blue check? Fuck that, they should pay me. If that gets instituted, I’m gone like Enron.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) October 31, 2022
In response, Elon Musk defended the price, saying it was essential to the company’s continued profitability and the only way to “defeat bots and trolls.” However, he humorously tried to be reasonable by enquiring as to whether $8 per month or $20 per month seemed better.
In response, he wrote,
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“We need to pay the bills somehow! Twitter cannot rely entirely on advertisers. How about $8?”
We need to pay the bills somehow! Twitter cannot rely entirely on advertisers. How about $8?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 1, 2022
In another tweet, he wrote,
“I will explain the rationale in longer form before this is implemented. It is the only way to defeat the bots & trolls.”
I will explain the rationale in longer form before this is implemented. It is the only way to defeat the bots & trolls.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 1, 2022
Due to what many perceive as “bargaining,” the proprietor of Twitter experienced a considerable amount of trolling. On the other hand, many people also trolled Stephen King for being too sensitive over the $20 fee. When criticised for being “cheap” for not paying, King responded,
“It ain’t the money, it’s the principle of the thing.”
Aside from this materialistic world, some desi Twitter users made light-hearted comparisons between the dialogue and a merchant and client encounter at Delhi’s renowned Sarojini Nagar Market.
Have a look at some of the hilarious reactions from the netizens
Sarojini market bhaiya doesn’t go less than 50 percent in one shot. pic.twitter.com/rVwUHnk6Ga
— wakil sahiba (@lawerredup) November 1, 2022
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Elon bringing Sarojini game to this party https://t.co/XTM4Wov1sW
— Narayani Basu (@narayani_basu) November 1, 2022
Bhaia Sarojini mein $2 mein mil jaata hai…dhang se lagao. https://t.co/fqiVCrHlbn
— Kabir Taneja (@KabirTaneja) November 1, 2022
What do you think about Elon Musk’s new idea? Comment your thoughts in the comment section!
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