Reddit Outage Coincides with Subreddit Protests Against API Pricing

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Reddit Sad Face

On Monday, Reddit experienced an outage coinciding with a protest by thousands of subreddits against the site's new API pricing terms. Reddit attributed the issues to a significant number of subreddits going private, causing expected stability problems. The blackout was resolved by 12:28 PM CT. 

The problems began in the morning, affecting Reddit's desktop and mobile sites as well as its native mobile apps. Although some subreddits were accessible during the outage, Reddit.com failed to load. Downdetector recorded around 43,000 user reports of issues at the peak, but the reports have since decreased. A Twitch stream tracking the number of subreddits going private in protest was also affected but has returned to normal.

Over 7,900 subreddits have gone private or read-only in response to the API pricing changes, leading apps like Apollo for Reddit to announce their shutdown by the end of the month. The new pricing structure would be prohibitively expensive for developers, with estimated costs of over $20 million per year for apps like Apollo. 

Redditors are also concerned about the impact on accessibility apps, although Reddit has stated that exceptions will be made for accessibility-focused apps. Despite user discontent and subreddit protests, Reddit's CEO, Steve Huffman, has not indicated any changes to the announced API pricing during an AMA. As of Sunday, Reddit confirmed its intention to proceed with the pricing changes as planned

 

ThoughtsUnboxed acknowledges the rationale behind API pricing as Reddit prepares for its upcoming IPO, aiming to demonstrate the platform's long-term profitability to investors. However, designing the pricing strategy with the explicit goal of coercing third-party apps into closure is flagrantly illegal and constitutes extortion. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) should take note of this concerning situation.

 

Sources:

Downdetector

Twitch Stream

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