Move over Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber.
There’s more to being famous on Twitter than actually being famous now that the social media site is allowing users to apply for “verified” status.
Verified Twitter accounts are profiles Twitter administrators deem “accounts of public interest,” – typically related to music, news, entertainment, or business – the most popular conversation starters and trendsetters on the site who usually have many followers.
The company opened up its verified application process in the U.S. Today. It will rollout worldwide next week.
Previously, users had no say in whether or not Twitter’s employee administrators “verified” their accounts, signified with a blue, highlighted checkmark next to users’ names letting others know the account is indeed the official account of the user indicated rather than a copy-cat or fan user profile.
Now Twitter users can apply for verification, giving them more power than ever.
“We want to make it even easier for people to find creators and influencers on Twitter so it makes sense for us to let people apply for verification,” Twitter User Services VP Tina Bhatnagar said in a press release Tuesday. “We hope opening up this application process results in more people finding great, high-quality accounts to follow, and for these creators and influencers to connect with a broader audience.”
Becoming verified on Twitter became a right of passage and internet fame after the process was introduced in 2009. Today there are more than 187,000 verified Twitter accounts, according to the company.