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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u/AbigailLilac May 31 '23

I use RIF so much, the UI is literally burned into my phone screen. I'm going to miss it.

The official Reddit app is dogshit. I used to use reddit in my mobile browser, but they made that experience as obnoxious as possible too.

I remember paying for AlienBlue on my iPhone 4 way back in the old days. I'd do that again for an app like Apollo or RIF, but removing NSFW content means that's out too.

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u/xnd714 Jun 01 '23 edited Jun 01 '23

Lmao. Both my Galaxy S7 and my Note 9 have the little refresh button and message button burned into the screen as well.

Same as everyone else here, I think this will be the impetus. I need to break my Reddit addiction. I've been stuck on the site since 2009 and who knows how many thousands of hours spent.

Thanks /u/talklittle. I was around for the original open source RIF and then later this current app. Well worth whatever price I paid for them.

Edit: rarbg AND RIF killed in the same today. Today is the worst lol