Twitter has introduced its first subscription service, which offers added features for prolific users such as the ability to briefly "undo" a tweet.
The service, named Twitter Blue, was unveiled on Thursday, though is initially only available in Australia and Canada.
The feature could enable the social network to rely less on ads or promoted posts that disrupt the real-time flow of tweets that are a huge part of the global, one-to-many messaging platform's appeal.
"We've heard from the people that use Twitter a lot – and we mean a lot – that we don't always build power features that meet their needs," product management director Sara Beykpour and product manager Smita Mittal Gupta said in a blog post.
"Well, that's about to change."
Monthly subscriptions to Twitter Blue cost $3.49 ($2.88) in Canada and $4.49 ($3.44) in Australia in local currencies, and are available to any user, according to the blog.
Twitter has not yet announced when the service may roll out in other markets.
Perks for Blue subscribers will include a brief window of time during which they can "undo" or tweak a tweet. However, this limited feature only lets people set a timer of no more than 30 seconds during which they can alter or cancel a post, so those who want to alter their messages will have to be quick.
Additional features include tools making it easier to organise or read posts, along with access to dedicated customer support for trouble-shooting.
Twitter planned to enhance Blue based on feedback during the initial phase.
"For those wondering, no, a free Twitter is not going away, and never will," Beykpour and Gupta said.
"This subscription offering is simply meant to add enhanced and complementary features to the already existing Twitter experience for those who want it."
Twitter has been open about its plan for a premium paid platform in the past few months. In January, it acquired Revue, a newsletter provider, and earlier in May bought Scroll, a subscription service that removes adverts from news sites.
Last month, the social network also started testing a "Tip Jar", which allows selected users to send monetary tips to content creators on the platform.
A limited number of users around the world who tweet in English can add a Tip Jar feature to their profiles, but it is not yet know when the feature may become a permanent addition to the platform.
- Additional reporting by AFP
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Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
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Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only. Readers are encouraged to seek independent legal advice.
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Power: 450hp
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Specs
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Roll of honour 2019-2020
Dubai Rugby Sevens
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Runners up: Bahrain
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Bahrain
Runners up: UAE Premiership
UAE Premiership
Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes
UAE Division One
Winners: Abu Dhabi Saracens
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes II
UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
Runners up: RAK Rugby
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
The biog
Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives.
The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast.
As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau
He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker.
If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
