It looks like X will soon have its own paid partnership tags in-stream, with the feature spotted in testing in the back-end code of the app.
As you can see in this example, posted by app researcher Nima Owji, X is developing new content tags, which would make it easier for creators to run paid promotions within the X feed, with a simple tagging option to indicate the partnership.
X already has parameters in place for paid promotions and disclosure, though transparency is still manual, with X’s rules noting that:
“Posts that are part of a Paid Partnership published as an organic Post must include clear and conspicuous language indicating the commercial nature of such content, like ‘Ad’ or ‘Promoted Content.’”
So you have to say, in your post, that it’s an ad, which most creators do by using the #ad hashtag.
But this would simplify that option, while X could also look to build out the tag a little more, in order to give brands access to performance analytics and insights, as they can now access in other social apps.
Which don’t appear to be included at this point:
It would be a fairly minor update in the broader scheme, which would bring X more into line with market expectations around such, though with X looking to get more creators posting to the app, it could still be an important step, in facilitating more streamlined, transparent promotions.
X is making a bigger push on creators this year, by upping its revenue share payments, and offering a cash prize for the top performing X article this month. More earnings potential could keep X as a key focus for more creators, while long-form content has the multi-pronged benefit of providing more money and exposure for creators, more engagement for X, and more data for xAI to use.
As such, it makes sense for X to make this a priority, and this addition, if it is enacted in the app, could be another element in this broader push.
