Recently, Reddit made an announcement regarding changes to its API access. The company’s decision has forced the creator of the popular app Apollo to close down. Christian Selig, the developer of Apollo, announced that the app will be shutting down on June 30.
Selig shared this decision on Reddit, providing the following details in his post:
Reddit Is Fun (RIF) will cease operations on June 30, 2023, due to changes made by Reddit Inc to their API. This decision comes as a response to Reddit Inc’s hostile treatment of developers who build on their platform.
Unfortunately, Reddit Inc has consistently shown an unwillingness to compromise on the issues I mentioned in my previous post:
– The Reddit API will now require payment, with the pricing announced today amounting to $20 million per year for apps like Apollo to operate. While RIF may differ slightly, it would still be in the same range. It is important to note that RIF does not generate anywhere close to this amount in earnings.
– They are blocking advertisements in third-party apps, which significantly contribute to RIF’s revenue. This means they aim to impose a subscription model on RIF’s users. Meanwhile, Reddit’s official app continues to generate the majority of its revenue through ads.
– They are removing sexually explicit content from third-party apps while keeping it available in their official app. Speculations have arisen that NSFW content will no longer be allowed on Reddit, but if that were the case, why would Reddit Inc recently expand NSFW upload support on their desktop site?
I will publish a comprehensive and proper farewell post later this month. However, for now, I encourage you to read this informative and melancholic post by the Apollo dev, which I fully support. It closely reflects my recent experiences with Reddit Inc:
https://old.reddit.com/r/apolloapp/comments/144f6xm/apollo_will_close_down_on_june_30th_reddits/
Back in May of this year, Selig mentioned that the cost for 50 million requests on Reddit was set at $12,000. Given Apollo’s extensive user base, this would translate into an annual expense of $20 million, which Selig cannot afford to cover.