Twitter might let users paywall video content: report

Twitter is exploring the option to let users put video content behind a paywall, according to an internal company email obtained by The Washington Post. Mockups suggest users would be able to enable the “Paywalled Video” feature after adding video content to a tweet, and then choose from preset prices, such as $1, $2, $5, or $10. Other users would be able to like or retweet the content regardless of whether they’ve paid to view it.

Musk’s purchase of the company appears to have accelerated this pivot. The CEO has publicly announced plans to charge $8 a month to be verified on the social media network; a radical shift for a feature that’s previously been available free of charge for public figures. And according to WaPo, Twitter’s employees have been given a target to launch the new video paywall feature in just one to two weeks.

The tight deadline means that Twitter’s internal review teams have as little as three days to evaluate the risks of charging for video content on the service. These risks include users uploading copyrighted content and charging for it.