Update 06/09: Reddit CEO Steve Huffman kicked off his AMA today. Despite apps like Apollo shutting down, the company does not seem to be having a change odf heart on updating its API pricing policies.
Apollo, one of the most popular third-party Reddit apps for iOS, will shut down at the end of the month.
Apollo will close down on June 30th. Reddit’s recent decisions and actions have unfortunately made it impossible for Apollo to continue. Thank you so, so much for all the support over the years. ❤️ https://t.co/HOJaLMW8fx
— Christian Selig (@ChristianSelig) June 8, 2023
In a post on Twitter and Reddit, Apollo App creator Christian Selig announced it will shut down on June 30. Selig notes that Reddit's new API pricing policies are the reason for the app's closure.
"Reddit's recent decisions and actions have unfortunately made it impossible for Apollo to continue," Selig said.
A post on the Apollo App subreddit elaborates further on the decision to close Apollo. It notes that Reddit's current API pricing plans meant he would have to pay more than $20 million per year to operate the app, something Selig had previously said after the new pricing went into effect.
"Going from a free API for 8 years to suddenly incurring massive costs is not something I can feasibly make work with only 30 days," Selig wrote.
A few months ago, Reddit implemented a new pricing strategy that increased the cost of its API. However, Reddit told The Verge earlier this week that it planned to offer accessibility-focus apps an exemption to its new API pricing policy.
Reddit declined to comment "at the moment," but in an email sent to IGN, a spokesperson confirmed that CEO Steve Huffman is hosting an AMA tomorrow "to discuss our latest API updates, including accessibility, mod bots, and third-party mod tools."
Alongside Selig, several of the biggest subreddits announced its intentions to protest Reddit's new API pricing policy, with plans to block new posts and go dark starting on June 12. Several platforms planning to participate in the protest include r/gaming, r/gadgets, and r/todayilearned.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.