Last updated: February 19, 2023, 10:49 PM IST
There would be no changes to accounts on Facebook and Instagram that have already been verified, the company said.
This will allow users to verify their accounts, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Sunday, following a similar move by Elon Musk on Twitter
Facebook and Instagram owner Meta will launch a paid subscription service starting at $11.99 per month that will allow users to verify their accounts, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Sunday, following a similar move from Elon Musk on Twitter.
Rolling out first in Australia and New Zealand this week, Meta Verified will allow users to “verify your account with a government ID, get a blue badge, get additional impersonation protection against accounts that claim to be you, and get direct access to the customer. support,” Zuckerberg said.
“This new feature is about increasing the authenticity and security of our services,” he wrote in a statement on his Facebook account.
There would be no changes to accounts on Facebook and Instagram that have already been verified, the company said, adding that only users over the age of 18 will be allowed to subscribe. The service is not yet available for businesses.
Musk’s initial attempts to launch a similar service on rival social media network Twitter last year failed wildly with an embarrassing spate of fake accounts that scared advertisers and cast doubt on the site’s future.
He was forced to briefly suspend the effort before relaunching it in December to a muted reception.
Meta’s announcement comes as the social media giant has struggled with financial problems for the past year, announcing in November that it would lay off 11,000 employees, or 13 percent of its workforce – the largest headcount cut in the company’s history.
The layoffs are part of a wave of layoffs announced by Silicon Valley giants in recent months as the once-untouchable sector faces economic gloom.
Meta is also under pressure to take a huge gamble on the metaverse, the world of virtual reality that Zuckerberg says will be the next online frontier.
Investors penalized Meta last year, sending the company’s share price down by as much as two-thirds in 12 months, but the stock has recovered some ground in 2023.
Zuckerberg has remained optimistic about Meta’s future.
Earlier this month, the company reported its first annual drop in revenue since going public in 2012, but the decline was less brutal than expected.
The company also recently announced that the number of daily users on Facebook has passed two billion for the first time.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and was published from a syndicated news agency feed)
