‘Unlike some of the 3P [third-party] apps, we are not profitable,’ Steve Huffman says in defending the move to charge for high-volume API access.
‘Unlike some of the 3P [third-party] apps, we are not profitable,’ Steve Huffman says in defending the move to charge for high-volume API access.
It’s laughable that the CEO of a 10 billion dollar (in valuation) company https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/12/technology/reddit-new-funding.html is saying that numerous solo and small group developers are more successful than he is.
This is an absurd statement. Small app developers making ends meet are in no way analogous with a P&L from a corporation and it is disingenuous for Huffman to position himself in this “woe is me” argument.
Laughable, maybe, but not surprising. Since the Web 2.0 boom started picking up, the game for tech startups has always been to attract users as fast as possible, profits be damned, and hope a FAANG buys you out for your userbase before your VC money runs out. Post-Great Recession, debt has been near as makes no difference free, so VCs have been willing to extend very long runways to the companies they invest in, but with interest rates going sharply up the music has stopped and it’s time for companies like Reddit to show they can become profitable or else.
Also, if Reddit is truly so unprofitable and terrible… maybe they should get a new CEO?
Somehow I feel like Spez himself has made a lot more money during this time than 3rd party developers. Despite Reddit itself not turning a net profit.