Starting today until June 14, Reddit moderators of various communities such as r/memes, r/bitcoin, r/Youtube, etc., are coming together to protest the upcoming changes in Reddit’s API (application programming interface) policy under which the platform has introduced a premium access point to Reddit’s Data API for third-party apps which require higher data usage limits. As a part of this protest, they are turning their subreddits from public to private. Give me some context please: Under its premium plan, the company would charge $0.24 per 1,000 API calls (data requests made by a third-party app) starting July 1. Reddit has also said that starting July 5, it will limit access to mature content through its Data API. Some third-party developers whose apps were used by Reddit moderators to manage their communities, such as Appolo, Reddit Is Fun, and Sync, say that this pricing doesn’t work out for them and they will shut down before it goes into effect. The developer of the third-party app Appolo clarified that this new pricing model would end up costing his app almost $2 million a month and since his customers have paid for their subscriptions in advance makes it challenging for the app to raise its service costs and break even. Why it matters: The shutting down of these third-party apps could negatively affect the functioning of Reddit communities. According to a joint statement from Reddit moderators, “ In many cases, these apps offer superior mod tools, customization, streamlined interfaces, and other quality of life…
You must be logged in to post a comment Login