Twitter Gets Greedy with a Free API turned into a Paid Tier
Starting February 9th, Twitter API will no longer be free to access. The Twitter developer account made the announcement late Wednesday night. While Twitter hasn’t announced more details about the pricing, it said that it will introduce a paid basic tier.
What Is the Twitter API?
The Twitter API (Application Programming Interface) allows any third-party to retrieve public data and analyze it. This data from Twitter is used to create bots and apps that connect directly to the platform. Some examples include Pikaso and Thread Reader.
Currently, Twitter allows free access to its API. In addition, it also provides premium tiers for developers that need access to endpoints and unlock additional features. While Twitter did not disclose the price of its premium API tiers, it was reported in February 2022 that the fees started from $99 a month. This fee increased depending on the access level needed.
Who Does This Affect?
The decision to remove the free access to the API is a follow-up to the action taken by Twitter’s development team, when they banned third-party clients. This caused various apps like Tweetbot and Twitterrific to abandon their work on the platform.
In the past, various small developers have taken advantage of the free API access to create bots and tools for everyone’s benefit. This recent development will cause these bots and tools charging a fee or shutting down completely. Various scientists and students also use the free API to gather information for their research papers and study online behavior.
Why Did Twitter Do This?
After the announcement on Wednesday, Twitter CEO Elon Musk tweeted stating that various opinion manipulators and bot scammers have abused the free API. He claimed that charging a nominal fee of $100 a month with ID verification will clear up the mess.
What’s Next for Twitter?
This was just another step where Elon Musk is trying to make money and save his sinking ship. His goal is to clear the company’s loans as soon as possible. Some efforts in this direction included laying off about two third of their staff, charging $8 monthly subscription for user verification and the blue tick, and selling off various company assets after several offices were shut because of non-payment of rent.
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