- Meta Verified will cost $12 a month
- If it performs as poorly as 'Twitter Blue' it will have little immediate impact on revenue
Mark Zuckerberg announced on Instagram over the weekend that Meta (US:META) will launch a paid subscription service for the first time in its almost 20-year history, allowing Facebook and Instagram users to verify their accounts. This follows a move by Twitter last year to raise revenue by charging users to have their identities verified on the site.
The new Meta 'verified' product will cost $11.99 (£10) per month on web and $14.99 per month on mobile.
Twitter launched its Twitter Blue subscription service last year after Elon Musk acquired the company, in an effort to raise sales off the back of heavy users of the platform. So far, Twitter has had little success getting users to sign up - The Information reported Twitter Blue had just 180,000 users, last month. That is just 0.5 per cent of its total users and will only generate around $30mn of revenue. Facebook bosses had said in 2018 users may soon be able to stop the company sharing their details with advertisers for a fee, but this was never rolled out.
Under Meta's plans, users will need to prove they are at least 18 years old and upload a government ID as proof, gaining a 'verified' badge. This will then give subscribers exclusive stickers for stories and reels and provide them with 100 free stars per month to tip creators. It will be rolled out in Australia and New Zealand this week.
In a blog post the company said this paid service would also include "proactive account protection, access to account support, and increased visibility and reach”.
In 2022, Meta made 97 per cent of its revenue from advertising. However, for the first time in history its revenue dropped on an annual basis. In Q4, revenue was down 4.4 per cent year-on-year. This drop is because of a combination of Apple’s new privacy rules and the slowing down of the global economy which is stifling advertising spend.
At the same time, Meta spent $32bn as it ploughed money into developing its virtual reality headset. This contributed to free cash for the year dropping by 52 per cent to $18.4bn.
Based on the lack of success for Twitter Blue so far it is unlikely Meta Verified will move the dial on revenue in the short-term. However, this could be a first step towards a more subscription-based business which is less vulnerable to the cyclical nature of the economy.
