Comment by sethaurus | Hacker News Reader

Comment by sethaurus | Hacker News Reader

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From a legal point-of-view, yes, Reddit had control of the data and chose to alter the deal. And the app developer did have an exit plan: shutting down the app and refunding subscribers. The developer appears to have weighed his options, considered the strategy Reddit was communicating with the rollout of their API changes, and concluded that this was no longer a viable market.

Many people expressed strong opinions about what the developer should do, but he appears to have remained calm and rational throughout the experience, and chose to walk away when it made sense.

However:

> The content is what the users wanted - and Reddit had the content...

> ...in exchange for Reddit's content...

> ...operating businesses based on someone else's data (moat)...

Let's not fool ourselves: the data was created by and for the users, and it never belonged to Reddit in any moral sense. It's a regrettable externality of our legal framework that Reddit was able to withdraw their free API and prevent the community from accessing its own data how it saw fit.

In no way can we consider the content on reddit to be owned by the users.

By using reddit and posting, you agree to their terms - the content belongs to them.

It's unreasonable to believe Reddit should continue offering free services to businesses that were making money off of Reddit's content.

From the Reddit TOS:

> 5. Your Content

> The Services may contain information, text, links, graphics, photos, videos, audio, streams, software, tools, or other materials (“Content”), including Content created with or submitted to the Services by you or through your Account (“Your Content”). We take no responsibility for and we do not expressly or implicitly endorse, support, or guarantee the completeness, truthfulness, accuracy, or reliability of any of Your Content.

> By submitting Your Content to the Services, you represent and warrant that you have all rights, power, and authority necessary to grant the rights to Your Content contained within these Terms. Because you alone are responsible for Your Content, you may expose yourself to liability if you post or share Content without all necessary rights.

> You retain any ownership rights you have in Your Content, but you grant Reddit the following license to use that Content:

https://redditinc.com/policies/user-agreement-september-25-2...

Twice you have deliberately left out literally the most important bit. I'll quote it for you:

> When Your Content is created with or submitted to the Services, you grant us a worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, transferable, and sublicensable license to use, copy, modify, adapt, prepare derivative works of, distribute, store, perform, and display Your Content and any name, username, voice, or likeness provided in connection with Your Content in all media formats and channels now known or later developed anywhere in the world. This license includes the right for us to make Your Content available for syndication, broadcast, distribution, or publication by other companies, organizations, or individuals who partner with Reddit. You also agree that we may remove metadata associated with Your Content, and you irrevocably waive any claims and assertions of moral rights or attribution with respect to Your Content.

It's theirs the moment you click post - and there's nothing you can do about it.

That does not equal legal ownership.

> respect to Your Content

I don't know if you added the capitalization or not. If not I think it was precisely written like this to drive that point home.

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