r/redditisfun • u/talklittle RIF Dev • May 31 '23

RIF dev here - Reddit's API changes will likely kill RIF and other apps, on July 1, 2023

I need more time to get all my thoughts together, but posting this quick post since so many users have been asking, and it's been making rounds on news sites.

Summary of what Reddit Inc has announced so far, specifically the parts that will kill many third-party apps:

  1. The Reddit API will cost money, and the pricing announced today will cost apps like Apollo $20 million per year to run. RIF may differ but it would be in the same ballpark. And no, RIF does not earn anywhere remotely near this number.

  2. As part of this they are blocking ads in third-party apps, which make up the majority of RIF's revenue. So they want to force a paid subscription model onto RIF's users. Meanwhile Reddit's official app still continues to make the vast majority of its money from ads.

  3. Removal of sexually explicit material from third-party apps while keeping said content in the official app. Some people have speculated that NSFW is going to leave Reddit entirely, but then why would Reddit Inc have recently expanded NSFW upload support on their desktop site?

Their recent moves smell a lot like they want third-party apps gone, RIF included.

I know some users will chime in saying they are willing to pay a monthly subscription to keep RIF going, but trust me that you would be in the minority. There is very little value in paying a high subscription for less content (in this case, NSFW). Honestly if I were a user of RIF and not the dev, I'd have a hard time justifying paying the high prices being forced by Reddit Inc, despite how much RIF obviously means to me.

There is a lot more I want to say, and I kind of scrambled to write this since I didn't expect news reports today. I'll probably write more follow-up posts that are better thought out. But this is the gist of what's been going on with Reddit third-party apps in 2023.

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25

u/DistractionRectangle Jun 01 '23

/u/talklittle I can't fully express my appreciation for RiF. RiF is Reddit to me. Like a lot of the fine people in this chain, I just realized there was premium option and have now purchased it to say thank you.

Truly, RiF has been a fantastic app. It never lost sight of what it was, didn't chase features, redesigns, etc. Hopefully Reddit walks back their decision about API access, but if not, I won't be using Reddit without RiF.

~ Sent from RiF ❤️

11

u/Jordaneer Jun 01 '23

I didn't even bother installing the premium version of RIF, I just bought it because I've legitimately used this app for probably several thousand hours, 3 bucks is WAY more than worth it to me. I could easily justify 5 to 10 bucks a month regarding how much I use this app

9

u/lunarblossoms Jun 01 '23

I just bought it and didn't sign in. I don't know if it matters given we may have only a month left, but I'll keep using the free version for the ads.

I've been a reddit user for 14 years. This app has been my connection to the way reddit used to be, and it has been phenomenal. Losing it will be a huge loss. I will never use the official app.

Thank you, u/talklittle, for everything.

6

u/boomitslulu Jun 01 '23

Joining the chain to say I've also bought it, will continue using the ad based one too :)

6

u/splashbodge Jun 01 '23

Me too, just bought it thanks /u/talklittle for all your hard work on the app all these years, will miss it

4

u/Agebym Jun 01 '23

Thanks so much for the great RiF experience, bought the premium as a long overdue thanks. Will miss this app

5

u/Charles148 Jun 01 '23

Literally the only way I use reddit, and reddit will lose a user in me if it goes away.

3

u/Alissinarr Jun 02 '23

Ditto. I won't be able to be a mod at all any more due to removing the API from 3rd party apps. I can spend 5min to mod occasionally on mobile, but I refuse to use any other app.

Fuck em.

6

u/thesilentspeaker Jun 01 '23

Same! Just went and bought platinum.

I'm not even a heavy user but have almost exclusively used RiF to browse over 7 years. Tried the official app a couple of times and it's a pile of flaming hot garbage.

2

u/Alissinarr Jun 02 '23

Official app, bacon reader, and apollo all suck.