Twitter said on Wednesday it would price Twitter Blue subscription for Android at $11 (roughly Rs. 900) per month – the same as for iOS subscribers – while offering a cheaper annual plan for web users when compared to monthly charges.

The blue check mark – previously free for verified accounts of politicians, famous personalities, journalists and other public figures – will now be open to anyone prepared to pay.

It was rolled out last year to help Twitter grow revenue as owner Elon Musk fights to retain advertisers.

Google‘s Android users will be able to purchase Twitter Blue’s monthly subscription for $11 (roughly Rs. 900), the same price as for Apple‘s iOS users, Twitter said on its website.

The higher pricing for Android users is likely to offset fees charged by Android’s Google Play Store, like Apple’s App Store.

The annual plan for subscription to Blue, only available on the web, was priced at $84 (roughly Rs. 6,800), a discount to the monthly web subscription price of $8 (roughly Rs. 650).

Twitter did not respond to a request for comment on its Android pricing strategy.

The discount for web users would be available in countries including United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, New Zealand and Australia, Twitter said.

The blue check mark was previously reserved for verified accounts of politicians, famous personalities, journalists and other public figures. But a subscription option, open to anyone prepared to pay, was rolled out last year to help Twitter grow revenue as Musk fights to retain advertisers.

Earlier in December, Musk added that Twitter’s basic blue tick will have half the number of advertisements and the social media platform will offer a higher tier with no advertisements by next year.

© Thomson Reuters 2023