It appears that the future edition of TweetDeck, the Twitter software version targeted at hardcore users, won’t be free. A sign-up page for the software that is
still under development has been found by security researcher Jane Manchun Wong. It advertises itself as a “powerful, real-time tool for users who live on Twitter” and claims to be ad-free.
Although the page does not state that you must pay Twitter to access TweetDeck, businesses rarely tout the benefit of free products that “helps you avoid the
thing that makes us money” (even if, like the current version of TweetDeck, it is). Unbelievably, Twitter already has a premium subscription service that it is attempting to market to its most devoted users.
Power users can manage and organize their feeds, send and receive tweets and direct messages, and browse profiles using TweetDeck, a former independent
program that Twitter subsequently acquired. TweetDeck is geared toward power users. You can access TweetDeck through desktop browsers or the TweetDeck
apps for Chrome and macOS.
Currently accessible in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand for $2.99 per month, Twitter Blue is the company’s paid subscription service. The
a subscription gives users access to features like Undo Tweet and NFT profile pictures for subscribed iOS users.
Tweetdeck Is Essentially Twitter Pro — and Used by The Type of People Twitter Blue Targets
The idea that Twitter wants to make money off of TweetDeck has been floated before. Manchun Wong discovered some code earlier this month that appeared
to route non-Blue subscribers seeking to access the updated TweetDeck to the Twitter Blue sign-up page. Additionally, Bloomberg reported over a year ago
that Twitter was thinking about adding a subscription service feature to the app. That information was released just before Twitter announced that TweetDeck was undergoing a “major revamp.”
A sneak peek of that renovation has been provided. It’s extensive (and contentious) and probably required a lot of work. It’s not implausible that Twitter is
taking this action in an effort to come out as friendlier to the public and outside developers, but it seems more likely that the business launched Twitter Blue
with the knowledge that TweetDeck could be a significant selling factor.
READ MORE: on iOS, Android Tests Instant Comment Translations for Premium Subscribers
Twitter is filling in the new @TweetDeck signup page that they’re working on. Two new highlights:
1. A link for “the legacy version of TweetDeck” (even though it might be deprecated at some point in the future)
2. “Ad-free experience” being marketed as the selling point 😛 https://t.co/XP6sYsTUGM pic.twitter.com/fRc0ujZ7o2
— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) March 30, 2022
What is effectively the pro version of Twitter’s app would fit nicely into the service’s feature-set because the $2.99 per month membership already feels like it’s targeted at those who use Twitter professionally.
Of course, there is a flaw in this theory: Twitter Blue contains advertisements. Even two points in the service’s FAQ are based on this reality. So how does
TweetDeck’s lack of ads indicates that it will soon be a part of Twitter Blue?
It’s a good question, but to be honest, that inconsistency persuades me more. By including a Blue feature, Twitter might give its paying members a method to
avoid seeing advertisements on its online and mobile apps without having TweetDeckg to go through the trouble of doing so. It sort of works out that way (for Twitter, at least).
READ MORE: A Bot Tried to Ruin Wordle by Posting the Next Day’s Answer: Twitter Suspended the Account.
