Archive link: https://archive.ph/jFcSY
Last month X CEO Linda Yaccarino confirmed that video calls would be coming to the app formerly known as Twitter as part of its transition into an “everything app.” Now, new code in the X app reveals that both audio and video calls will be supported. However, the feature will not be available to all X users — only those with an X Premium membership, it appears.
lines of code refer to a warning that appears when someone tries to DM another user on the app which explains that “audio and video calls are a premium feature,” and entices them to “subscribe to gain access.”
To date, X has not been able to make a compelling case for X Premium, as independent research indicated that the company has only sold roughly 1 million subscriptions
By comparison, Snapchat’s premium subscription Snapchat+ just topped the 5 million user mark. Meanwhile, analysts are forecasting Meta’s subscription, Meta Verified, will have 12 million subscribers by early next year.
It seems like Twitter is really trying to find a value-add for Twitter Blue, but I can’t see this enticing anyone.
What is the overlap between people you met on Twitter that you want to have a video call with that you don’t trust with your phone number/ other contact information?
This feels especially value-less when you remember you would only be able to call people who are also Twitter Blue subscribers (approximately 1 in 550).
Kik used to be popular for Clash of Clans groups because you did not need to share the phone number and it was free. Now there is Telegram for that as it became much more popular and the app is generally more polished. And again, was free.
Nobody will buy it for this.
Telegram still requires a phone number. Bad news for teenagers who don't have a phone yet.
Isn’t this a complete waste of money? With all the thousands of ways to make a video/audio call for free, who would want to pay a subscription for that? Both parties need to be subscribed too, the user pool is extra small. A troll doesn’t have friends to call, what’s the purpose of this?
Everything Musk has done is a desperate move to milk a little quick cash out of Twitter's most foolhardy users. But hey, they've got a huge user base, and if even 0.1% get on board it'll be a big win, if only short-term.
That said, I think Twitter honestly might be a little ahead of the curve. Seems like the advertising bubble is bursting and I think a lot of ad-supported corporate services are going to come to the same realization soon: that they have been running an unsustainable business for years and they need radical change.
Hopefully most of them will do it more gracefully than this. I just don't see Twitter being culturally relevant in the future. I think this is the biggest waste of social buy-in since Google sabotaged and squandered gchat.
Ahh, Google’s tried and true method of throwing a million half-baked features to people before promptly cancelling them all. This will definitely work for them.
Awesome, eXTwitter is on the cutting edge of 10 years ago.
oh good, that means checkmarks won’t be able to harass normies that way, I approve.
ah yes, free speech for everyone
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Last month X CEO Linda Yaccarino confirmed that video calls would be coming to the app formerly known as Twitter as part of its transition into an “everything app.” Now, new code in the X app reveals that both audio and video calls will be supported.
The new findings were uncovered by tech veteran-turned-investor Chris Messina inside the X app’s code.
Other lines of code refer to a warning that appears when someone tries to DM another user on the app which explains that “audio and video calls are a premium feature,” and entices them to “subscribe to gain access.” That means users will have to pay for X Premium, the subscription previously known as Twitter Blue, which includes a number of upgraded features including verification, a reduced ad load, the ability to edit posts, support for longer posts, prioritized rankings in search and conversations, and more.
To date, X has not been able to make a compelling case for X Premium, as independent research indicated that the company has only sold roughly 1 million subscriptions, according to researcher Travis Brown, who’s been tracking the success of the product over on GitHub.
For reference, X owner Elon Musk recently said the app has 550 million monthly active users.
X no longer responds to requests for comment after Musk’s takeover, only replying with an automated message to incoming press queries.
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Just make it all paid only and kill it once and for all…
