Facebook and Instagram launch paid subscriptions in Australia and New Zealand

On Friday, Meta launched a paid subscription to Facebook and Instagram in Australia and New Zealand, which will serve as a test for the new verification service, which has until now been free on these social networks.

Faced with falling advertising revenue, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram launched a pilot test of the paid subscription in these offshore countries before rolling it out to other markets.

The service costs US$11.99 on the web and US$14.99 on iOS and Android mobile platforms.

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Starting this Friday, users from these countries who present their identity documents will be able to request a badge to guarantee their authenticity and gain greater protection against impersonation, direct access to customer service and greater visibility, Meta said.

We are gradually expanding access to MetaVerified on Facebook and Instagram and hope to reach 100% in the first seven days of launch, a company spokesperson told AFP.

After several attempts to access the MetaVerified service, it was unavailable in Sydney on the first day of launch.

“This new tool seeks to increase reliability and security in our services,” said Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, in a statement published on these social networks. This will allow Meta to generate new revenue from its 2 billion users.

Experts believe that the army of creators, influencers and celebrities who inhabit these networks could be the main users of the service, as many complain of difficulties in solving technical and administrative problems.

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Jonathan Hutchinson, professor of digital communications at the University of Sydney, believes this “VIP service” will be a “value proposition for the content creator”.

But before launch, casual users seemed less than enthusiastic. “I think most of my friends would laugh about it,” said Ainsley Jade, 35, from Sydney. “I definitely wouldn’t pay for it, no way,” she added.

Some analysts were surprised by Meta’s adoption of the verification service, just weeks after its rival, Twitter, produced results far below expectations.