Home > Tech
R/gaming, r/aww, r/Music, r/todayilearned, and r/pics are all protesting Reddit's API change.
By Christianna Silva on
What is going on with Reddit today? Credit: Getty images
It is possible to mourn something you love while celebrating its loss.
RIP your Google searches; RIP your morning Reddit scroll; long live user-driven protests.
Thousands of Reddit forums have gone dark as of Monday morning to protest Reddit's decision to charge third-party developers millions of dollars in fees for API access. According to Reddark, more than 6,500 subreddits have made their forums private during the blackouts — including the ever-popular r/gaming, r/aww, r/Music, r/todayilearned, and r/pics.
"/r/Funny has gone private as part of the coordinated protest against Reddit’s exorbitant new API pricing," a notice on the forum’s landing page reads, before linking to a story on The Verge. "This community will not grant access requests during the protest. Please do not message asking to be added to the subreddit."
Black Friday deals you can shop right now
Products available for purchase here through affiliate links are selected by our merchandising team. If you buy something through links on our site, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission.
-
Apple AirPods Pro 2 ANC Earbuds With USB-C Charging Case — $154.00 (List Price $249.00)
-
Apple iPad 10.2" 64GB Wi-Fi Tablet (2021 Release) — $199.99 (List Price $329.00)
-
Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ 64GB Wi-Fi 11" Tablet — $149.00 (List Price $219.99)
-
Blink Outdoor 4 1080p Security Camera (3-Pack) — $99.99 (List Price $259.99)
-
Bose QuietComfort Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones — $199.00 (List Price $349.00)
-
Apple Watch Series 10 (GPS, 42mm, Black, S/M, Sports Band) — $329.00 (List Price $399.00)
-
iRobot Roomba Vac Essential Q0120 Robot Vacuum Cleaner — $149.00 (List Price $249.99)
-
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless Gaming Headset (Black) — $259.99 (List Price $349.99)
-
Samsung Odyssey G93SC 49" Dual QHD OLED Curved Monitor — $949.99 (List Price $1599.99)
SEE ALSO:
Reddit is down amid blackout protest over company's new policySome of those subreddits, like r/Funny, have millions of subscribers, while others are smaller, but still well-loved, subreddits.All of the subreddits rely on moderators to ensure the forums are not overrun by bots and harassment. Many of these Reddit users are pointing out the irony that Reddit runs entirely on the labor of moderators who are not paid and yet are demanding more funding from its third-party app developers.
Mashable Light Speed
Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?
Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter.
By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
"If they’re going to start charging for API calls, [moderators] should start charging reddit for their time keeping the website functioning," one user wrote, on r/videos, according to CNN. R/videos is no longer accessible to the public due to the blackout. "This site ONLY functions on the backs of free labor from mods."
And API access is an invaluable resource for Redditers who use third-party apps like Apollo, Reddit is Fun, Sync, and ReddPlanet are to browse Reddit, whose app kind of sucks. Now, many of those apps are having to shut down because they can't afford the platform's exorbitant costs that will kick in as soon as next month.
"In order to avoid incurring charges I will delete Apollo's API token on the evening of June 30th PST," Christian Selig, the developer of Reddit's most popular third-party app, Apollo, wrote in a Reddit post. "Until that point, Apollo should continue to operate as it has, but after that date attempts to connect to the Reddit API will fail."
Related Stories
- Reddit went down amid blackout protest over company's new policy
- Reddit CEO's AMA turns into disaster
- Apollo app to shut down as Reddit API dispute somehow gets uglier
- Redditors to shut down communities in response to API price changes
- Twitter and Reddit's high-priced APIs are bad news for the internet's future
Tweet may have been deleted
"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," Reddit CEO and co-founder Steve Huffman said in an "Ask Me Anything" discussion Friday.
It seems almost completely supported by the majority of Reddit users, too — or at least the most vocal ones.
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
Tweet may have been deleted
This is a developing story.
Topics Reddit
Christianna Silva is a Senior Culture Reporter at Mashable. They write about tech and digital culture, with a focus on Facebook and Instagram. Before joining Mashable, they worked as an editor at NPR and MTV News, a reporter at Teen Vogue and VICE News, and as a stablehand at a mini-horse farm. You can follow them on Twitter @christianna_j.
Recommended For You
Reddit's latest policy change could stifle future protests against the platform
If moderators want to turn a subreddit private, they will now need permission from Reddit.
By Matt Binder
OpenAI's Sam Altman had an AMA on Reddit: 5 takeaways about ChatGPT and more
We read the Reddit AMA so you don't have to.
By Cecily Mauran
Reddit is down again Thursday. What we know so far.
Reddit crashed on Thursday.
By Tim Marcin
Is Reddit down? Why you are seeing no healthy upstream error
The website is affected from desktop.
By Sam Haysom
Hurricane Milton questions? Check out the White House's new Reddit page.
The page will continue to correct misinformation and update users on federal actions.
By Chase DiBenedetto
Trending on Mashable
NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for December 2, 2024
Everything you need to solve 'Connections' #540.
By Mashable Team
Wordle today: Answer, hints for December 2
Here are some tips and tricks to help you find the answer to "Wordle" #1262.
By Mashable Team
What's going on with ChatGPT and the name 'David Mayer'?
Who is David Mayer and why won't ChatGPT say his name?
By Cecily Mauran
Cyber Monday streaming deals are here for one last day
Lock in the year's lowest prices before they're gone.
By Christina Buff
Spotify Wrapped 2024: When it comes out, how to view yours
It's not out yet. But very soon!
By Tim Marcin
The biggest stories of the day delivered to your inbox.
This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.
Thanks for signing up. See you at your inbox!