Twitter will relaunch Twitter Blue at a higher price for Apple users

Dec 10 (Reuters) – Twitter Inc will relaunch a revamped version of its Twitter Blue subscription service on Monday at a higher price for Apple users, the company said in a tweet on Saturday.

The company said users can subscribe to the revamped service, which will allow subscribers to edit tweets, upload 1080p videos and receive blue check account verification, for $8 a month through the Web but $11 a month through Apple iOS.

Twitter didn’t explain why Apple users were charged more than others on the network, but there were media reports that the company was looking for ways to offset the fees charged by the App Store.

Twitter originally launched Twitter Blue in early November before shutting it down as fake accounts mushroomed. It was then scheduled to launch again on November 29, but it was repulsed.

Elon Musk, who took Twitter private for $44 billion in November, in a series of tweets last month listed various complaints about Apple, including the 30 percent fee the iPhone maker charges software developers for in-app purchases.

He then accused Apple of threatening to block Twitter from its app store and also said the iPhone maker had stopped advertising on social media platform.

However, after a subsequent meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook, he tweeted that the misunderstanding over removing Twitter from Apple’s app store was allowed.

Both Twitter and Apple did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

Reporting by Gokul Pisharody and Kanjik Ghosh in Bengaluru; Editing by David Gregorio and Aurora Ellis

Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.