Facebook To Begin Charging For Contacting Celebrities Worldwide
By Digital Afro Lead Editor: Stephen Brown
Don’t be too eager to send a message to your favorite celebrity on Facebook, pretty soon, it will cost you. The social media firm has announced a new plan to start charging $10, $50, even $100, to message celebs worldwide. The amount is based on a new algorithm they are using to calculate a persons fame.
Currently, Facebook is charging users $1 to contact people outside of their friend circle, however this new move is giant leap into the huh?
The system is currently being beta tested in the UK, and recently, users across the pond were baffled, when they were promptly alerted that the fee to message David Beckham would be 50 pounds.
An official statement from Facebook announcing the move reads: “The system of paying to message non-friends in their inbox is designed to prevent spam while acknowledging that sometimes you might want to hear from people outside your immediate social circle. We are testing a number of price points in the UK and other countries to establish the optimal fee that signals importance. Part of that test involves charging higher amounts for public figures, based on the number of followers they have. This is still a test and these prices are not set in stone.”
*Just a Side Note: The program is royalty free for the celebs meaning they get none of the money from the program, Facebook keeps 100% of the profit.
What are your thoughts on this?
1. Is this a good idea to do this to FB users?
2. Is this fair to the artists & celebs who will receive no compensation from this?
Please leave your Facebook comments below.
Related Story: You want to inbox Mark Zuckerberg?, it will cost you $100
