The platform’s new developer regulations may make third-party applications like Apollo unaffordable.
One of the most well-known third-party Reddit applications’ creator may be priced out by Reddit’s newly revealed plan to charge for API access. The creator of Reddit client Apollo is sounding the alarm about the increased API fees, claiming that in order to maintain his program in its present state, he would have to invest millions of dollars.
In light of the surge in AI businesses utilizing their platform to train sophisticated language models, Reddit announced last month significant revisions to its API policies. Steve Huffman, CEO of Reddit, told The New York Times that the company’s data corpus is extremely important. We don’t have to provide all of that value for nothing to some of the biggest businesses in the world, though.
But it appears that the more expensive new plans, which are scheduled to go into effect on June 19th, will also apply to independent app developers. Christian Selig, the only creator of Apollo, claims he would have to pay $20 million to continue operating his program « as-is » under the new regulations, even though Reddit hasn’t publicly published its API price.
He said in a Reddit post that « 50 million requests costs $12,000, a figure far more than I ever could have imagined, » noting many interactions he’s had with Reddit staff over the impending API changes. « Apollo made 7 billion requests last month, or roughly 1.7 million dollars per month, or 20 million US dollars per year, » says the author.
Selig and Apollo, which has received accolades for its attention to design elements and for offering functionality beyond Reddit’s main app, are put in a difficult situation as a result of this price. Even though the app offers subscriptions, its present income is insufficient to pay the high API fee. He claims that since the majority of members now pay $0.99 per month, he would need to increase subscription costs to at least $2.50 per month to cover the typical user’s 344 API calls each day. That wouldn’t take into consideration the app’s free users or its power users, who use it at considerably greater rates. « Even keeping the existing, subscription-only users, I would be SUBSTANTIALLY in the red each month, » Selig tells Engadget.
Reddit’s representative claimed in a statement that Selig received « pricing per 1,000 API calls, not a monthly bill, » but she refrained from going into further detail. The spokesman stated,
“Our pricing is based on usage levels that we measure to be as equitable as possible.” “We’ve been, and will continue, to work with third-party apps to help them improve efficiency, which can significantly impact overall cost.”
If this all seems strangely familiar, it’s because the radical changes Twitter has made to its API restrictions under Elon Musk and Reddit’s new developer guidelines are very similar. In Twitter’s situation, the firm made the decision to prohibit third-party client apps while also drastically increasing the cost of its API for the researchers and companies who previously relied on greater access to Twitter data.
Reddit should be noted for not being as overtly antagonistic to developers. Reddit representatives on the calls Selig has made with them have been « communicative and civil » about the adjustments, according to Selig. Additionally, a Reddit representative claimed the business wanted to keep third-party apps available.
The representative stated,
“We’re committed to fostering a developer ecosystem around Reddit – developers and third-party apps can make Reddit better.” “Our Data API has powered thousands of applications, such as tools to make moderation easier, and utilities that help users stay up to date on their favorite topics, and games. Developers are incredibly valuable to the Reddit ecosystem, so much so that we recently updated our Developer Platform.”
Selig said that he is unsure of how he will manage the adjustments. He said on Reddit, “I hope it goes without saying that I don’t have that kind of money,” “This is going to require some thinking.”
