Reddit blackout: What, why and how it is impacting users

What is Reddit blackout?

Recently, Reddit said that it will charge third-party app developers for access to the site’s data. The announcement did not go well with the moderators who have decided to protest against the charge. As a result, more than  3,000 subreddit groups aka communities dedicated to particular interests on the platform — are “going dark” starting today. 

These include subreddits like r/apple, r/videos, r/sports and r/MildlyInteresting who have already blocked public access to their pages. If you try accessing these communities, you will see a message that reads: “R/apple is  a private community. We stand in solidarity with numerous people who need access to the API, including bot developers, people with accessibility needs (r/blind) and 3rd party app users (Apollo, Sync, etc).”

The protest is expected to last at least 48 hours, although some groups have signaled they will stay dark for longer. 

Is there any wayout to access subreddits during the dark period?

As per a Reddit FAQ site, there are four types of communities on Reddit — public, restricted, private and premium-only. Now that most subreddits have gone private, the only way to view it is if you have been granted direct access by the moderator.

In the given situation, it is very unlikely that moderators will be granting access to users during the blackout period.

What exactly is Reddit charging for?

Reddit says that it will charge developers of third-party apps, such as Apollo and Sync for using data from the platform like user posts, reader comments and more. App developers say that these API charges are prohibitive. For example, Apollo claims it would be forced to pay Reddit $20 million per year if the charge, as proposed by Reddit, is levied. 

Reddit is planning to introduce the new pricing structure from July 1. App developers including Apollo and Sync, have threatened to shut down on June 30 as a result.

What does Reddit say?

According to a Bloomberg report, a company spokesman said Reddit spends millions on hosting its content and “needs to be fairly paid to continue supporting high-usage third-party apps.” Reddit Chief Executive Officer Steve Huffman in ‘ask me anything’ session wrote: “Reddit needs to be a self-sustaining business, and to do that, we can no longer subsidize commercial entities that require large-scale data use.” 

Updated: 12 Jun 2023, 07:26 PM IST