From laying off employees to charging a fee for blue tick, billionaire Elon Musk rolled out major changes on Twitter ever since he took over as the company's new CEO.
From laying off employees to charging a fee for blue tick, billionaire Elon Musk rolled out major changes on Twitter ever since he took over as the company's new CEO.
NOV 20: "The people have spoken," tweeted Mr Musk, saying that 51.8% of more than 15 million Twitter users voted for the ban to be lifted.
But the former US president may not return to the platform, earlier saying: "I don't see any reason for it".
His account was suspended in 2021 due to the risk of incitement of violence.
Twitter's previous management acted just days after Donald Trump's supporters stormed the US Capitol in Washington DC on 6 January.
Hundreds of rioters entered the complex as the US Congress attempted to certify Joe Biden's victory in the presidential election. The ensuing violence led to the deaths of four civilians and a police officer.
Soon after the riots, Donald Trump's Facebook, Instagram and YouTube accounts, which all had tens of millions of followers - were also suspended.
Several months later, he launched his own social media platform, Truth Social.
Earlier this week, the Republican announced that he would once again run for the US presidency in 2024.
Mr Musk, the world's richest man, took control of Twitter in October in a $44bn (£37bn) deal.
He immediately embarked on a series of radical changes within the social media giant, amid concerns that he might loosen Twitter's regulations on hate speech and misinformation.
With just over a week before the US midterm elections on 8 November, he responded to questions about whether he would reinstate Mr Trump's account by tweeting: "If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me if Trump is coming back on this platform, Twitter would be minting money!"
Earlier this week, he told employees that the company's office buildings would be temporarily closed, with immediate effect.
The announcement comes amid reports that large numbers of staff were quitting after Mr Musk called on them to sign up for "long hours at high intensity" or leave.
Nov 6: In an update for Apple devices, the company said the feature would be open to users in certain countries who sign up to its Twitter Blue service for $7.99 (£7) per month.
The policy change is controversial, amid concerns that the platform could be swamped with fake accounts.
It follows Twitter's takeover by Elon Musk, who on Friday laid off around half of the company's workforce.
The sought-after blue tick was previously only available to high-profile or influential individuals and organisations - who were asked to prove their identity.
It has been used as a sign that a profile is authentic, and is a key tool to help users identify reliable information on the platform.
The policy change may fuel worries that government figures, celebrities, journalists and brands could be impersonated by any user willing to pay a monthly fee.
Mr Musk, the world's richest person, appears to be looking to diversify Twitter's income, following his acquisition of the firm late last month in a $44bn (£39bn) deal.
On Friday, the billionaire said Twitter was losing more than $4m (£3.5m) per day, insisting that this gave him "no choice" over culling around half the company's 7,500-strong workforce.
The cuts - as well as Mr Musk's fierce advocacy of free speech - have caused speculation that Twitter could water down its efforts on content moderation.
However, Mr Musk has insisted that the firm's stance towards harmful material remains "absolutely unchanged".
On Saturday a top United Nations official, Human Rights Commissioner Volker Türk, urged Mr Musk to "ensure that human rights are central to the management of Twitter".
The unusual UN intervention pointed to the sacking of Twitter's whole human rights team, saying this was "not an encouraging start" under Mr Musk's ownership.
There was no immediate response from Twitter.
Few details were publicised relating to the change in verification policy, and a Twitter Blue subscription reportedly remained at its old price of £4.99 in the UK following Saturday's announcement.
Twitter's update said the changes would apply only in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand at first.
A flurry of tweets from Mr Musk himself suggested the changes would be rolled out worldwide after they were observed in the initial handful of countries.
It was not clear what would happen to those profiles which already had a blue tick - or if Twitter still planned to "verify" a user other than by charging them a subscription.
Responding to one user who asked what would happen to existing verified profiles, Mr Musk said the timeline for changes to be implemented was a "couple [of] months".
Answering another question about the risk of users pretending to be notable figures, he said Twitter would "suspend the account attempting impersonation and keep the money".
Previewing other upcoming changes, Mr Musk said Twitter would soon allow users to attach long-form text to tweets, "ending [the] absurdity of notepad screenshots".
Earlier on Saturday, Twitter co-founder and ex-CEO Jack Dorsey addressed the mass sackings, saying sorry to employees for what had unfolded at his former firm.
Mr Dorsey - who quit as CEO in November and left the board of directors in May - said he was aware Twitter staff were "angry with me".
His statement continued: "I own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I grew the company size too quickly. I apologise for that."
Mr Dorsey appeared to endorse the need for dismissals. Earlier this year, he expressed support for Mr Musk's takeover.
A host of major brands have halted advertising spending with Twitter in recent days amid the company's upheaval.
Mr Musk has been looking to decrease the platform's reliance on adverts - and Saturday's update also promised "half the ads". (With inputs from BBC)
Nov 2: As part of changes after a $44bn (£38bn) takeover of the social media site, Mr Musk said it was "essential to defeat spam/scam".
A blue tick mark next to a username - normally for high-profile figures - is currently free.
The move could make it harder to identify reliable sources, say critics.
Mr Musk, the world's richest person, added that paid users would have priority in replies and searches, and half as many advertisements.
"Power to the people! Blue for $8/month," the billionaire said on Twitter, criticising the old method of blue tick verification as a "lords and peasants system".
Twitter's former method of verifying users for a blue tick included a short online application form, and was reserved for those whose identities were targets for impersonation, such as celebrities, politicians and journalists.
The company introduced the system in 2009, after it faced a lawsuit accusing it of not doing enough to prevent imposter accounts.
But Mr Musk is facing a hefty challenge as he works to overhaul Twitter's business, which has not posted a profit in years.
He has said he wants to reduce Twitter's reliance on advertising, even as some companies have grown concerned about advertising on the site under his leadership.
General Motors - a rival of Mr Musk's electric car company Tesla - said last week it was suspending advertising on the site.
Meanwhile, some other major brands have more quietly put a temporary halt to advertising on the platform as they wait to see how Mr Musk's changes play out, a media buyer for a leading advertising firm told the BBC.
On Monday, one of the world's biggest advertising companies, IPG, advised its clients to suspend Twitter adverts for a week, citing a need for more clarity on the Twitter's plans to ensure "trust and safety" on the platform. IPG is given billions of pounds per year, by some of the world's biggest brands, to handle their marketing budgets.
The charge for blue tick privileges drew scepticism after original reports that said the charge could be $20 (£18) monthly.
Many on the platform echoed the statement of author Stephen King, who wrote in response to reports of changes that instead Twitter "should pay me".
Mr Musk wrote to Mr King saying, "We need to pay the bills somehow!"
