Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post that the Menlo Park-based company would launch the program this week, beginning in Australia and New Zealand.subscription service that lets you verify your account with a government ID, get a blue badge, get extra impersonation protection against accounts claiming to be you, and get direct access to customer support," Zucerkberg wrote."This new feature is about increasing authenticity and security across our services.
The new service will cost $11.99 a month if someone is using the company's Facebook and Instagram products on the web or $14.99 a month if they're using it through Apple's iOS, Zuckerberg wrote. The move follows the high-profile decision by new Twitter owner Elon Musk who has replaced his company's formerly-free verification program with a paid plan. Other tech companies, like Reddit and YouTube, also have adopted a paid approach to get users to pay a monthly subscription fee.“We are evolving the meaning of the blue badge to focus on authenticity so we can expand verification access to more people,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement to media outlets..