Elon Musk’s X to sell inactive usernames – Only premium users can buy them: Details inside

X’s “handle marketplace” lands – Musk’s new brainchild, the social-media platform X, formerly Twitter, is rolling out a new feature: a platform-specific “handle marketplace” to purchase previously unavailable usernames that were “currently off-limits or not owned by anyone.”

This new marketplace to monetise unused X handles and give paying users a way to land their dream handles and usernames is part of Elon Musk’s overhaul of the platform. Now free users and bots sit on millions of username handles unused and expired.

This raises the question-who gets to bid?

Contrary to previous reports, the marketplace is by-invite only—restricting access to those who subscribe to paid memberships. The update means that only paid subscribers with the service’s Premium+ or Premium Business subscription can bid for or request renamed handles. X Premium+ and Premium Business subscribers will also be allowed to request custom handles.

Will Free-Tier Users Be Allowed To Bid?

Not for now. For the time being, X’s free-tier users are out of luck as the free users appear to be left out in the new handle marketplace.

What kind of handles can you get?

The X handles have been divided into two categories: Priority handles and Rare handles. Priority handles, which are full names or include multi‐word phrases and alphanumeric combinations that mimic regular names, are likely to come free or at a relatively lower cost to anyone with the appropriate Premium+ or Premium Business subscription.

Rare handles, which are short generic or culturally significant names, will go for a steeper premium-starting as low as USD 2,500 for less coveted handles and shooting into seven-figure sums for the most desired handles.

Read more: Twitter Reactions to The ‘Handle Marketplace’

Need to know fine print

Here are some points to note about the new Handle marketplace. Handles bought through subscriptions for Priority accounts, will typically be required to maintain their subscription plan to keep them. If the plan changes to a lower subscription plan, or if the account gets cancelled, users will typically lose the handle and revert to their old handles.

Rare handles purchased directly typically come with terms that allow them to be retained, even if they downgrade or cancel subscription plans, but may come with some caveats (terms vary by handle).

Factors such as character length, uniqueness, cultural or societal significance, user demand, competition, and other market forces will determine pricing.

Twitter handle marketplace is part of a wider move by tech companies to try and turn unassigned digital real-estate into revenue generating opportunities.

Does this spell the future of Social Handles?

With the so-called “handle marketplace,” X, is seeking to make monetisation on the site more robust than just the ability to place advertisements. For users of X seeking a new way to rebrand and find a new identity with an available handle, it’s a golden opportunity, even if highly coveted handles could run into the higher digits or seven figures.

The future of social-media handles becoming monetised remains to be seen. The question now is whether other social-media platforms will adopt this strategy or continue to allow handles to remain unclaimed.