YouTube disallowing adblockers, Reddit charging for API usage, Twitter blocking non-registered users. These events happen almost at the same time. Is this one of the effects of the tech bubble burst?
Simple: being favorable to users isn’t profitable, and the US economy (in which Silicon Valley) is in the toilet at the moment
YouTube can try lol. But they’ve never cared about users. They’re just all at about the same point where they have to stop pretending in order to feed that capitalism machine (or try to at least). It looks like hostility, but it’s just them finally being honest.
It’s so common there’s even a term for it now, “enshittification”
To quote the article that describes it:
“Here is how platforms die: First, they are good to their users; then they abuse their users to make things better for their business customers; finally, they abuse those business customers to claw back all the value for themselves. Then, they die.”
Source: https://www.wired.com/story/tiktok-platforms-cory-doctorow/ The source is about TikTok but the author has gone on to describe how this applies to basically every modern tech company in various interviews.
Because they don’t have too be. Most people are so dependent on social media that they’ll keep using a service even though they hate it. Like a drug addict who keeps using even though it’s killing them.
That’s certainly what the companies believe, is it actually true though? Musk said everyone but the bots came crawling back… Without showing numbers
I think tech CEOs badly want to believe this is true, because it would be an easy solution to all their problems. And with everyone doing something similar, there’s no competitor for them to jump to
I think they’re about to realize no one has to go to them, entry were just the convenient choice. Once they’re no longer convenient, people will turn elsewhere
I agree with you of course, proven by where we are having this conversation. However, I have my doubts about the majority of Reddit users switching, at least currently. Most people don’t understand what is going on and are even more confused by the alternatives.
That’s certainly what the companies believe, is it actually true though? Musk said everyone but the bots came crawling back… Without showing numbers
I think tech CEOs badly want to believe this is true, because it would be an easy solution to all their problems. And with everyone doing something similar, there’s no competitor for them to jump to
I think they’re about to realize no one has to go to them, entry were just the convenient choice. Once they’re no longer convenient, people will turn elsewhere
They haven’t yet realized that a platform dependent on user created content and user run moderation, is infinitely replaceable. See Fark and Digg.
Reddit and Twitter and just the latest to learn the lesson. Without your users, you may as well be MySpace.
It’s a process known as Enshittification.
Here is how platforms die: first, they are good to their users; then they abuse their users to make things better for their business customers; finally, they abuse those business customers to claw back all the value for themselves. Then, they die.
The rest of the read is quite good.
Like several of the other comments that highlight the interest rates, for those of us who saw the late 90’s/early 2000’s tech bubble burst it’s the same thing all over again.
Interest rates go up > VCs can’t barrow free money and demand a return on investment > companies try to demonstrate profitability > enshitification
Oh you thought the end goal was to make a good website. Hahaha.
AI training and data mining. The value of data has surpassed the value of oil long ago. The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil.
For the same reason you need to get a job.
They have grown to the point where they are now focusing on being more profitable. And apparently they are not scared of losing users.
Could it be related to the silicon valley bank going under maybe?
It’s all about the money, money
All of the sudden? This has been happening, maybe slowly at first, since every one of those platforms started, imo.
