Reddit’s API Policy Sparks Backlash: CEO Huffman Stands Defiant

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman remains resolute amid significant backlash from the platform's community following the imposition of a controversial API policy.

The platform has been engulfed in discord since it announced in April that third-party apps would be charged for API use. Huffman defended this decision. He argued that the API was never intended to support these clients in the first place.

The backlash escalated when Christian Selig, the developer of Apollo, a popular Reddit client for iOS, detailed the financial ramifications of this policy.

Other third-party developers, like Fun and Relay for Reddit, echoed Selig's sentiments. They announced potential closures by the end of June.

After meeting with Reddit, Selig claimed that the API pricing could cost him a staggering $20 million annually, which could ultimately lead to Apollo running out of business.

In a bid to mitigate the situation, Reddit announced that it would provide free access to its API for non-commercial apps focused on accessibility. Such apps include edReader, Dystopia, and Luna. However, this concession has done little to pacify the frustrated community.

The situation was further exacerbated on June 12, when thousands of subreddits went dark to protest the API changes. It resulted in a temporary site-wide outage.

The community's rebellion intensified following Huffman's inflammatory remarks during an AMA. Huffman likened protesting moderators to the landed gentry." He also argued that their long-term positions weren't democratic. This has led several subreddits to extend their blackout periods.

The Potential Alteration

Huffman's comments suggest upcoming changes in moderator policies. In the coming days, Reddit users will probably be able to vote out moderators.

Huffman was adamant that Reddit wouldn't use in-house paid moderation. Neither will it make decisions that centralize power.

This comes despite a study estimating that unpaid moderators spend 466 hours daily maintaining communities. Paying them an hourly wage of $20 would equal an annual cost of $3.4 million for Reddit.

Huffman acknowledged the upheaval caused by the policy changes may impact third-party apps. However, he also clarified that these apps have been profiting from Reddit's data. Consequently, the company is bearing infrastructure costs of up to $10 million annually.

Huffman stressed that 97% of users access the platform via Reddit's site or the official app. Therefore, the 3% using third-party apps doesn't represent the overall community sentiment.

Huffman pointed out that 93% of moderation actions are carried out using Reddit's own tools.

Besides sharing views on the debated API policy, Huffman has also put light on the proposed Reddit IPO. He stated that an IPO could be a future possibility, but the platform's immediate focus is on profitability. There are other priorities that the organization wants to address first.

The defiance, however, is being continued. Moderators are seeking new methods to conduct blackouts. Some of them have chosen to shift to alternative platforms like Lemmy and Kbin.

As the controversy rages on, it remains to be seen how Reddit's new policies will ultimately affect its relationship with both developers and users.

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