John Paul M. Joaquin Tech 03.31.2022 08:Mar AM EDT

Twitter's TweetDeck Might Become a Paid Feature in the Future

TweetDeck could become a paid app in the future, an app researcher discovered.

Security and app researcher Jane Manchun Wong recently discovered that an under-construction sign-up page for TweetDeck, Twitter's power-user-focused version, indicates that it may be a paid feature or app in the future, per The Verge.

Wong also mentioned that it would advertise itself as a "powerful, real-time tool for people who live on Twitter."

TweetDeck App Details

The Verge mentioned that aside from being a "powerful, real-time tool," the upcoming TweetDeck would also offer an ad-free experience, which is most likely where some of the payment would go should it become a paid app.

The sign-up page also mentioned that it would allow users to grow and engage their community and an opportunity to collaborate with one or more Twitter users. It could also be a news or trends aggregator with which people can discover the latest news and trends as they happen while monitoring their brand and their competitors.

It would seem that these features will be an enhanced version of the app journalists, social media professionals, and other powers users enjoy, per Engadget.

As Twitter is still constructing the sign-up page, people, especially professionals, can expect that more showcased features will be added in the future, possibly when the app is close to its launch day.

Wong previously dug up the app's code on March 17, adding that Twitter is planning to integrate TweetDeck into Twitter Blue in the future, per Wong's past tweet.

Twitter Blue is the first-ever subscription-based offering from Twitter. It is a separate app that offers enhanced and complementary features that would take people's Twitter experience to the next level, per Twitter's blog post on the matter.

The code Wong discovered is gatekeeping the feature from users who do not have a Twitter Blue subscription. These people would then find themselves looking at Twitter Blue's sign-up page to access TweetDeck.

Twitter, as a response to The Verge's inquiries about the app's monetization and official launch date, said that it had nothing to share about TweetDeck "at the moment."

Engadget reported Twitter has been testing a new version of TweetDeck since 2021, making significant changes to the app like new column types, a full Tweet composer, new advanced search features, and a new way to group columns into clean workspaces.

TweetDeck Monetization

Despite Wong's recent discoveries, it still remains unclear if TweetDeck would be a standalone app or a new Twitter Blue feature. The Verge explained that having TweetDeck as a Twitter Blue feature would let Twitter offer its Twitter Blue subscribers a way to get an ad-free experience without having to do the work of "exorcising" them from its web and mobile apps.

Regardless, the fact that Twitter wants to monetize TweetDeck is nothing new to the company. It previously asked users in 2017 if they were willing to pay 20 dollars a month for a "more advanced TweetDeck experience." Bloomberg even reported that the company is considering placing a subscription fee on TweetDeck.

Related Article: "Collaborations" in Tweets Now Closer Than Ever