“BuckRowdy,” known as Bucky in the Reddit community, has spent over a decade diligently moderating numerous communities on the popular online platform. Bucky, alongside many other moderators, played a crucial role in nurturing and maintaining the vibrant discussions on Reddit. However, a recent revolt erupted among moderators when the company introduced changes that significantly increased fees for independent developers using Reddit’s data.
These changes, aimed at bolstering Reddit’s financial standing in preparation for its upcoming initial public offering (IPO), harmed third-party developers who build tools for Reddit moderators. Some developers had to shut down or modify their apps due to the increased costs. In response, Bucky and their fellow moderators shut down hundreds of forums, rendering Reddit practically unusable for its 57 million daily visitors. The protest even led to the site’s temporary site outage.
Bucky expressed his dismay at the website’s move, highlighting the demoralizing nature of being a Reddit moderator who deals with user abuse. He questioned the fairness of the fee changes: “I take all this abuse for you, and keep your website clean, and this is how you repay us?”
As Reddit strives to evolve from a rough-and-tumble internet message board into a mature social media business, it faces uncertainty regarding its community’s acceptance of the changes. The company has been expanding its executive team and strengthening its advertising capabilities, with over $1.3 billion in funding and a valuation exceeding $10 billion.
Like other social media platforms during their growth phases, Reddit has faced backlash due to platform changes. Notably, Twitter and Facebook have encountered similar situations when their modifications upset developers and users. What makes the recent revolt on Reddit stand out is the immense power wielded by its community. Following the closure of numerous forums by moderators, users spent 16 percent less time on the site, according to Similarweb, an internet data analytics company.
Reddit’s CEO, Steve Huffman, intended to improve the platform for new and existing users while building a sustainable business. He admitted fault for the lack of transparency in communicating the pricing changes to developers and acknowledged the anxiety caused by Reddit’s evolution. Huffman appealed to the shared love for Reddit that users and executives feel and the collective fear of losing the website.
Founded in 2005, Reddit championed a countercultural approach toward the internet and its advertising-driven economy. The website advocated for free speech, zero ads, and an insular culture that birthed Web 2.0’s meme culture. Reddit’s past has also been rife with numerous controversies. However, as the site expanded and received venture funding, its leaders recognized the potential for building a profitable business. Huffman, who returned as CEO in 2015, embraced the idea of advertising revenue by implementing rule changes to curb toxic content and confidentially filing paperwork for Reddit’s IPO.
Last year, due to market volatility, Reddit postponed its IPO plans. Since then, Huffman has been actively working to enhance the site, expand its user base, and strengthen company financials. In April, he announced plans to restrict access to Reddit’s application programming interface (API) and charge big companies for accessing Reddit data. However, the lack of details on pricing changes and their impact caused discontent among developers. One developer of a popular third-party app, Apollo, even announced its closure due to the increased fees, incurring annual costs of over $20 million.
The community’s response included restricting access to popular subreddits and posting explicit material to force the forums into the ‘18+’ category, which is not advertiser-friendly. Users also organized protests, such as limiting r/pics to only John Oliver-related photos. Huffman defended his decisions, citing the financial strain of supporting apps like Apollo that generate no revenue for Reddit.
These changes, aimed at bolstering Reddit’s financial standing in preparation for its upcoming initial public offering (IPO), harmed third-party developers who build tools for Reddit moderators. Some developers had to shut down or modify their apps due to the increased costs. In response, Bucky and their fellow moderators shut down hundreds of forums, rendering Reddit practically unusable for its 57 million daily visitors. The protest even led to the site’s temporary site outage.
Bucky expressed his dismay at the website’s move, highlighting the demoralizing nature of being a Reddit moderator who deals with user abuse. He questioned the fairness of the fee changes: “I take all this abuse for you, and keep your website clean, and this is how you repay us?”
As Reddit strives to evolve from a rough-and-tumble internet message board into a mature social media business, it faces uncertainty regarding its community’s acceptance of the changes. The company has been expanding its executive team and strengthening its advertising capabilities, with over $1.3 billion in funding and a valuation exceeding $10 billion.
Like other social media platforms during their growth phases, Reddit has faced backlash due to platform changes. Notably, Twitter and Facebook have encountered similar situations when their modifications upset developers and users. What makes the recent revolt on Reddit stand out is the immense power wielded by its community. Following the closure of numerous forums by moderators, users spent 16 percent less time on the site, according to Similarweb, an internet data analytics company.
Reddit’s CEO, Steve Huffman, intended to improve the platform for new and existing users while building a sustainable business. He admitted fault for the lack of transparency in communicating the pricing changes to developers and acknowledged the anxiety caused by Reddit’s evolution. Huffman appealed to the shared love for Reddit that users and executives feel and the collective fear of losing the website.
Founded in 2005, Reddit championed a countercultural approach toward the internet and its advertising-driven economy. The website advocated for free speech, zero ads, and an insular culture that birthed Web 2.0’s meme culture. Reddit’s past has also been rife with numerous controversies. However, as the site expanded and received venture funding, its leaders recognized the potential for building a profitable business. Huffman, who returned as CEO in 2015, embraced the idea of advertising revenue by implementing rule changes to curb toxic content and confidentially filing paperwork for Reddit’s IPO.
Last year, due to market volatility, Reddit postponed its IPO plans. Since then, Huffman has been actively working to enhance the site, expand its user base, and strengthen company financials. In April, he announced plans to restrict access to Reddit’s application programming interface (API) and charge big companies for accessing Reddit data. However, the lack of details on pricing changes and their impact caused discontent among developers. One developer of a popular third-party app, Apollo, even announced its closure due to the increased fees, incurring annual costs of over $20 million.
The community’s response included restricting access to popular subreddits and posting explicit material to force the forums into the ‘18+’ category, which is not advertiser-friendly. Users also organized protests, such as limiting r/pics to only John Oliver-related photos. Huffman defended his decisions, citing the financial strain of supporting apps like Apollo that generate no revenue for Reddit.
