As quoted from the linked post.
It looks like you’re part of one of our experiments. The logged-in mobile web experience is currently unavailable for a portion of users. To access the site you can log on via desktop, the mobile apps, or wait for the experiment to conclude.
This is separate from the API issue. This will actually BLOCK you from even viewing reddit on your phone without using the official app.
Archive.org link in case the post is removed.
Jeez. The speed at which I’ve gone from “man it sucks that Apollo is shutting down but I still really enjoy Reddit and will suffer the first-party client” to “wow, Reddit is really trying to destroy their service and it’s probably best I don’t invest any more time there” is insane… going to draft up some thoughts and a probable farewell message for my frequented subs and followers there. End of an era.
Stages of grief Speedrun any%
It’s one thing to test a new idea or a UX tweak or similar on a small portion of users - but just turning off a key way to access your service is so just so weird to me. How many of Reddit’s decisions at this point are some version of, “hey, how angry do they get? What can we get away with?”
People need to understand that this is about tracking your eyeballs. Reddit viewed on a webpage does not provide the metadata they want. What metadata does the app provide? Things you wouldn’t think about wanting as a human, but the aggregate is very valuable.
Stuff like how long did you watch that video Ad? Where did you click on screen and at what time? What content were you viewing and what course of action did you take to get there? Web viewing only shows the landing page you arrived on reddit from and the exit page that took you away from reddit. Performing these actions in the app provides metadata cookie crumbs like a trail of roach shit to every single thing you’ve done on reddit in micro activities.
I’m not sure. I’ve worked at companies using amplitude and hotjar that can record all click event and sessions on web
Users can block those with extensions so the data isn’t as reliable
That’s probably a big part. Web browsers can do ad blocking. Within the official Reddit app that’s way more difficult.
Funneling the herd into the slaughterhouse.
Users can block those on desktop without issue. On mobile it’s a bit harder so most people I know don’t even if they use ublock or something on their PCs/laptops (though that is of course only anecdotal).
So if anything if that was the issue they should’ve shut off support for the desktop version LOL /s
Honestly this is so absurd it’s funny. Peak business brain to think that people in 2023 are willing to download an app and register an account to simply access content.
“old.reddit.com isn’t going anywhere”
– a spez lie
If it stays, I assume it’s because spez himself uses it
Reddit is officially on a bankruptcy speedrun.
Dollar-store Elon Musk is going full “fuck you” to redditors.
The dollarama elon musk???
It’s unbelievable how’s user hostile all of these major site have become. I deleted my 11 year old Reddit account today and while it hurt a little it’s important that we send a message and not use Reddit at least until they repeal this bullshit.
Same! I deleted my 10 year account. Kinda not even sad. It was going downhill for a while now. But hey I just created my own instance for gardeners called thegarden.land so now I have a new home to grow roots and thrive!
I’m pretty sure I’m going to delete my three year and ten year accounts and just walk away for good. Honestly I was a little sad all day today, because I have a few hobbies I’m really crazy about and the cooking, baking, gemstone, and gardening communities have felt like home for a long time…but just using lemmy for a tiny little bit, I’m actually really excited! I’m having a much simpler experience here that’s refreshing. I like the content I’m reading.
They just keep digging
haha, digg
They’ve already made the “new” reddit web view unusable for any sub marked NSFW. I feel sorry for the web devs at Reddit that spent all this time making a responsive site that works on mobile, then to be forced to artificially block access to push app usage.
Not surprised. They need to milk every last drop of revenue from their users free content for the upcoming IPO.
Between this and Twitter, I feel like “enshittification” is really the word of the past year. It’s incredible to watch these massive social networks completely turn on their users in the name of profit.
They were always going to. The pre-enshittification stage of a modern capitalist website consists of burning VC money to collect users to later exploit.
Twitter probably opened the floodgates when they managed to shaft users and cut API access without outright killing themselves. Now everyone else is emboldened to ask “why can’t we do that too?”.
*without outright killing themselves YET.
Wow…
The API issue was a huge nail into the coffin of the user experience at reddit. For sure, mobile site will disappear and then old.reddit.
Everything about this is utterly tone deaf, you can see it in u/spez answer in his AMA about how the company will continue to be profit driven until it’s profitable. Bro, this is not how you talk to your user base. Your actions, policies, and strategic outlook should be toward driving the user experience and your service so that it is profitable. Not degrading all things for grinding down every extra cent at the expense of your entire companies differentiators.
Fuck spez, fuck reddit.
Are they legally allowed to just do that? Just shadow ban certain users temporarily for an ‘experiment’?
If so… Why is that legally allowed??
Why on earth would it be illegal? What possible law could have been broken? You don’t have a “right” to visit reddit with a mobile browser. They have the right to restrict access as they see fit.
A lot of this sort of A/B testing has the character of a psychology experiment. If it were conducted by a reputable research lab, it would have to pass an instituational review board who would weigh in on whether it was an ethical experiment, and among other things research subjects would always have the right to decline to participate in the experiment.
But when private companies do it, nobody holds them to the same standard of ethics in their human experimentation. But clearly people’s right not to be subject to psychological experiments without their consent is being violated.
Some asshole at Deloitte is going to make a ton of money writing case studies about this.
And someone from McKinsey & Co. is currently making money from this as a consultant
Don’t worry, PwC will make a ton of money when they’re asked to help cut costs after this crashes and burns.
