X introduces $1 annual fee for new users in anti-spam effort

X, formerly known as Twitter, is testing a new subscription called "Not a Bot" in New Zealand and the Philippines.

New users are required to pay a $1 annual fee to post and access core features like tweets, retweets, bookmarks, and likes. This move is aimed at reducing spam and bot activity on the platform. Those who choose not to pay will have "read-only" access.

This subscription fee will not apply to existing users, and X states that it's not intended as a profit driver. This trial follows recent discussions about combatting bots and spam on the platform.

The introduction of this subscription trial has sparked speculation about whether X intends to charge all users in the future.