Twitter increases the display name length to 50 characters

Lately, twitter has been enlarging their coast (in a manner of speaking). It started with twitter bumping up the number of characters in a single tweet to 280.

And in the same fashion, they have increased the display name length up to 50 characters.

What this means is that if you have a super long name or just want more room for all your seasonal-themed display names, Twitter now lets you use up to 50 characters in your name, up from the original 20. The new length means you can also add more emoji without hitting the limit.

While many users embraced the change, some are wondering  why Twitter was adding somewhat gimmicky features when it could be working on tackling its more serious issues on the platform (particularly as it’s facing backlash for verifying Jason Kessler, the organizer behind the United the Right rally in Charlottesville, which resulted in the death of protester Heather Heyer). Twitter has continued to court controversy in recent times due to its enduring harassment problems.

The rest of us are probably wondering how long until Twitter expands user handles from 15 characters to… well, longer? It’s a move that might not happen for a while, though, given today’s mixed response to the news, combined with the fact that verified users lose their tick when they change their usernames. (The service has decided to halt verifying accounts for now.) Of course, that all depends on whether you believe the verified badge even carries any significant meaning on Twitter.