USA; Finally, Twitter has started blocking access to its free API (Application Programming Interface). Early in February, the business announced that its free API would be discontinued.
The delay prevented action, though. Twitter announced new paid API tiers last week, and this appears to be what spurred the latest action. Thousands of developers and users have been impacted by Twitter's decision to end the free API.
An essential component of the Twitter ecosystem was the free API. The API was utilised by a number of outside parties to develop bots and other applications that connect to Twitter.
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Developers have created some amusing tools over the years. That will likely come to an end when the free API is no longer available. How many people will choose the paid tiers is unknown.
The company abruptly stopped allowing third-party clients to access its API, which led to the termination of Twitter's free API. The free API as we previously knew it is gone thanks to the social media site's new API policy, which was revealed last week. Free, basic, and enterprise are the new tiers. Old tiers would be deactivated "over the next 30 days," the company had stated.
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It appears that things haven't gone as Twitter had anticipated. At this point, it shouldn't be shocking. The API was abruptly disconnected for researchers, developers, bot creators, apps, websites, and other users. Even worse, it appears that there was little interaction between the business and its developers. The developer forums for Twitter are currently crowded with perplexed developers.
Numerous apps and bots have been impacted by the termination of Twitter's free API. Users have been informed about the new development by numerous businesses and app/bot creators. Feedbin, TweetShift, TweeseCake, TWBlue, Cheap Bots, Thread Reader App, and Done Quick are just a few of the apps and bots that are impacted. Substack was also impacted by the API change. Tweets could not be embedded in writers' Substack stories.
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The free API significantly contributed to Twitter becoming what it is today. So what impact would turning it off have on the platform? Elon Musk, the CEO of Twitter, defended the choice by claiming that the free API was "badly abused." It's anticipated that the shutdown will affect Twitter's compatibility with other programmes and websites. However, it provides the business with a new source of income (if people subscribe).
In relation to the new revenue stream, the prices for Twitter's new paid API tiers are outrageous. Although there is a free tier, you can only post 1,500 tweets and have write-only access. Monthly cost for the entry-level tier is $100. The cost of the enterprise tier has not yet been disclosed by the company, but it may be as high as $40,000 per month.