X Premium+ becomes more expensive, marking a turning point in the social network's economic strategy.
Tl;dr
- The price of the X Premium+ subscription is increasing from $16 to $22 per month in the United States, with similar increases in other countries.
- Existing subscribers will see their rates adjusted from January 20, 2025, with no exception for old rates.
- X justifies this increase by the need to invest in the continuous improvement of the service and to reduce its dependence on advertising revenue.
A significant increase in price
The X Premium+ subscription now increases to $22 per month in the United States, up from $16. Annual subscriptions are also increasing, from $168 to $229 per year. This increase also applies to users outside the United States, with some countries seeing even larger increases. For example, subscribers in Canada will see their price increase from $20 to $26, and in Australia, from $26 to $35. Even countries like Nigeria are experiencing spectacular increases, where the subscription price exceeds $20, compared to less than $5 previously.
The consequences for existing subscribers
Current X Premium+ users will not benefit from preferred pricing. Those who are already subscribed to this program will see their subscription increase to the new rate of $22 per month starting January 20, 2025. In the meantime, renewals made before this date will be billed at the previous rate. This marks a major change in X's pricing policy, which does not grant any exceptions to its existing users. This price increase occurs in a context where X is seeking to diversify its sources of income.
Why this price increase?
X Premium+ is the most expensive subscription offered by Elon Musk's platform, offering additional features compared to the classic Premium plan, such as removing ads on the platform (although sponsored content may still appear), a privileged access to the Grok chatbot and tools like Radar, which helps track trends. According to X, this increase is justified by the desire to continue investing in improving the Premium+ experience. It also reflects a strategic shift towards a more subscriber-focused revenue model, following the loss of advertising revenue.
A redesigned economic model
The price increase is part of a broader restructuring of the company under Musk's leadership. With X suffering a loss of many advertisers since acquiring the platform in 2022, the company is now looking to reduce its reliance on advertising revenue. X has thus implemented a new monetization model for creators, where payments are now based on the number of views of content, rather than on advertising impressions. This development marks a further step in the adaptation of X to the new economic realities of the platform.
