Elon Musk’s X to boost revenue by selling off abandoned usernames

X (formerly Twitter) is gearing up to introduce a "handle inquiry" process, allowing Verified Organisations to bid on abandoned usernames.

This move is part of Elon Musk’s social media network’s efforts to generate additional revenue streams.

According to recent updates to X's web application, discovered by reverse engineer Nima Owji, the bidding process will start at $10,000 and might reach up to $500,000.

However, Verified Organizations that already have a $1,000 per month X subscription, will be able to participate in the auction process.

It’s important to note that the idea of selling handles is not new, as X considered an online auction process for bidding on handles in January 2023.

Musk has also supported freeing up X's namespace for active users, having eliminated inactive accounts in May 2023.

The handle auction process will involve an automated support bot, which will facilitate inquiries and respond within three business days if the desired handle is available.

Once purchased, the handle will be transferred to the new owner within one or two days.

Moreover, the platform’s documentation currently states that inactive usernames cannot be released, but the company is now creating an official process for buying and selling handles.