Brave Reddit announced recently it was going to start charging for API usage, in a bid to finally make the site profitable. Many third party apps have claimed they are going to have to shut down as a result.
The main argument is about moderation, as many mods (who are unpaid volunteers) feel that they cannot adequately mod reddit with the default modding tools, and so require apps to do it successfully. Also many feel that it’s unfair of Reddit to charge for the data as it’s actually created and provided by the users who should have a right to access it freely.
In order to protest this change about 70% of subreddits decided to go private and hold a backout for 48 hours, which started earlier this week. Reddit has held strong though, so many subreddits, including F1, have decided to extend the blackout potentially indefinitely.
In my view the API change sucks, but ultimately its reddit’s API and the current model has always seemed unsustainable, as the third party apps allow users to bypass ads. In fact many apps do show ads and that money goes back to the app creator rather than Reddit.
Previously it was VC money that kept it afloat but the tech economy has changed massively recently and it needs to become profitable. I get the arguments of the mods but I’m not a fan of the strong arming tactic. Also, how does it benefit anyone if reddit goes bust?
Anyway, long story short I need to find a new place for F1 news.