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Twitter Plans to Start Auctioning Usernames to Make Money

Written by Abdullah Shahid ·  53 sec read >
Twitter username auction
Soon after entering into the Twitter office, CEO Elon Musk announced that Twitter will delete over 1.5 Billion inactive accounts, which might clear up usernames that can be auctioned

Ever since Twitter’s new CEO Elon Musk stepped into office, the company has been trying to find new ways to generate cash flow. Reports from the New York Times suggest that the social media company might start auctioning usernames to make more money.

The idea first started flowing in December, when Twitter engineers discussed the possibility of auctioning unique usernames.

While it’s true that the company has pondered upon the idea of selling usernames, its unclear if it will turn into reality.

Right after stepping into office, Twitter CEO Elon Musk announced that Twitter will delete over 1.5 billion inactive accounts. This account deletion process might release many unique usernames for the platform to auction.

Up until now, Twitter has refused to make any comments on the matter.

While the plan may sound lucrative for business, it’s against Twitter’s original policy. Known as ‘username squatting’, the practice is common in the black market.

Back in 2020, a young hacker was arrested for hacking the platform and selling high-profile usernames such as those of Obama, Musk and Trump.

If Twitter plans to go on with the idea, it will not be the first platform to do so. Telegram, a messaging platform, officially announced a username auction for both individual accounts and channels.

 

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