Nelson's Weblog: culture / apis-for-content-sites-must-be-free
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  • @ThreeHalflings
    4•1 year ago

    If I write a third party app, then I can filter out any ads you pass me, or I can make it easy for a user to do at arm’s length from me by allowing plugins. This is exactly what’s happening with reddit third party apps.

    I don’t think it’s as black and white as you’re making out.

    • deejay4am
      4•1 year ago

      Well if you violate TOS then your API key gets revoked. If apps want access then they can play by the rules; I think that’s fair enough.

      Now, what’s fair when it comes to ad placement is a whole other can of worms…

    • @WindInTrees
      2•1 year ago

      I would expect that not filtering ads (unless the user pays the content site) could be an enforceable stipulation to anyone using the APIs, no? I would also think that ads could be served through the common “get new posts” API in an opaque manner pretty easily.

      • @ThreeHalflings
        2•1 year ago

        Firstly, to enforce that reddit now has to police everyone who uses their api, and engage in the inevitable game of whackamole. Charging (a reasonable price!) for API calls and letting the third party app make it back in ad or subscription revenue is a much more sensible way to work. Everyone benefits, and reddit don’t need an army of people hunting down TOS evaders.

        Secondly, I know I didn’t see any reddit ads when I was using Boost for Reddit, so it’s actively happening. I was seeing Boost’s banner ad down the bottom of the app when I wasn’t on my home network.

        Lastly, I’m not convinced that surviving on ad revenue is a viable model after seeing dozens of companies go under, if fail to escape the red, either trying to get by on ad revenue or trying to switch to subscription modles because it wasn’t working.