Air France will no longer utilize the social media platform Twitter for consumer service. The airline announced last week that it would discontinue direct message support access.
Twitter has become a useful platform for airlines to communicate as an alternative to email and phone communications. Air France stated that it would continue to utilize other social media platforms for customer service.
No longer available
In a tweet published on Friday, the national airline of France cited changes to Twitter’s terms as the reason for its decision to discontinue direct messaging with passengers.
Despite having official profiles on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube, customers can continue to contact the airline for customer support through its website, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp instead of Twitter.
Several Twitter users who responded to Air France’s tweet appeared perplexed by the changes Twitter had implemented to force the airline to eliminate customer support access. “What conditions?” wrote one user.
Another user tweeted, “What has changed specifically? @elonmusk enjoys sending direct messages to airlines. This is an unexpected action by @airfrance.”
One individual explained that the airline’s social media personnel was helpful. “Unfortunately, your staff was courteous and efficient,” they wrote.
Why is this occurring?
The airline’s decision appears to be in response to Twitter’s recent API (application programming interface) policy changes. According to Skift, an Air France spokesperson provided a more detailed explanation on Friday.
According to The Verge, Twitter formally announced restructured API tiers on March 30. The platform explained that three new tiers, Free, Basic, and Enterprise, would be implemented within the following month. The Free tier permits users to post 1,500 tweets per month without incurring any fees. The user must pay for the other tiers.
The Basic tier is a $100 monthly subscription, providing the subscriber a choice between two tiers. The user level permits 3,000 monthly tweets, while the app level permits 50,000 monthly tweets.
Enterprise, the final tier, is designed for businesses. Twitter stated that it provides its users with commercial-level access and managed services that are tailored to the requirements of the company and its customers. According to a second user who replied to Air France’s tweet, the price for the tier was not specified, but it could cost corporations tens of thousands of dollars.
“Twitter began charging businesses up to $50,000 per month for API access,” the author wrote.
According to additional reports, the tier could cost as much as $42,000. The New York City subway system ceased using the social media app for its automated service updates last week, according to reports.
Will competitors follow suit?
This year, Elon Musk purchased Twitter for $43 billion and warned that the platform would undergo significant adjustments.
Unlike Air France, a number of airlines that utilize Twitter for customer relations support have not yet indicated that they will be leaving the platform. Currently, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and British Airways encourage passengers to communicate with them via their app. Even Air France’s sibling airline, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, utilizes Twitter as a customer service resource.