Meta's Plan to Roll Out R200 Subscription on Facebook and Instagram Has SA Seeing Red: “They Want to Control”

• Meta has set its sights on rolling out a paid subscription service on social media platforms Facebook and Instagram
• For a little over R200 a month, users will be able to verify their accounts and be given increased protection from cat phishing and other new features
• South Africans are not impressed by the move and have vowed to delete their Facebook accounts even though the app will still be free

CALIFORNIA - Facebook and Instagram owner Meta is taking a page out of Twitter owner Elon Musk's book with its plan to roll out a paid subscription to its platforms.

The service has not yet hit South African devices but is currently being tested in Australia and New Zealand.

Mark Zuckerberg announces paid subscription for Facebook and Instagram

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The CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerburg, announced on Sunday, 19 February, that the subscription service, Meta Verified, will start at the South African equivalent of R216.84 a month, Reuters reported.

Meta Verified will allow users who opt into the service to verify their account with an ID, get a blue badge, get improved impersonation protection from catfish and get direct access to customer support.

Facebook and Instagram users who don't want to use Meta Verified will still be able to use the platform for free.

Zuckerberg claims that the new feature will increase authenticity and security on the platforms it will be rolled out on, eNCA reported.

South Africans are not here for Meta's plan to roll out paid subscription service

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Though the subscription may be alluring to some, Meta Verified doesn't seem worth it to many South Africans who misunderstood that the app would no longer be free to use.

This is what people are saying:

Linda Thomas slammed:

"We do pay to use FB. Data fees. That's our subscription."

April Moranag said:

"We were only here simply because it was free... So goodbye!!"

Vasiliki Kotsiopoulos warned:

"We will be paying to use WhatsApp soon as WhatsApp is part of Meta too."

Abraham Jamela claimed:

"They want to control us like chickens."

Lizo Lyzo Qolombeni criticised:

"There's a name for it. It's called #GREED."

Siyabulale Siyabulela commented:

"This is not good at all..."

Mlungisi Lungi Kunene added:

"We will go back to Mxit."

Gideon Mangena stated

"I will just delete my account and move on with life."

Billionaires’ worst year?: World’s ultra-rich people who lost billions in 2022

In another story, Briefly News reported that the world's wealthiest people lost an estimated US$ 1.4 Trillion (R 23 774 576 000 000) in 2022.

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According to Bloomberg's Billionaires Index, most of the losses were self-inflicted, with Twitter owner Elon Musk's antics costing him $138 billion (R2 343 430 440 000).

The Russian invasion of Ukraine also dealt a big blow to most big businesses against widespread inflation and aggressive central bank tightening.

Source: Briefly News