After 10 years, Yelp gave my app 4 days (observationalhazard.com)

Article summary

The author of a macOS app called Restaurants, which used the Yelp API to help users find restaurants, received an email from Yelp stating that they would need to obtain a paid license to continue using the API. The author was given only 4 days' notice, which they felt was insufficient and unprofessional. The app had been using the Yelp API for 10 years and had been driving traffic to Yelp's website. The author ultimately removed the app from sale due to the high cost of the paid license.

Main themes

• API licensing
• Monetization strategies
• Developer relations
• Data access
• Business models
• API usage limits

What commenters say

• Yelp's decision to charge for API access is understandable, but the short notice and tone of the email were unprofessional and damaging to developers who had built businesses on the API.
• The high cost of the paid license is a significant barrier for small developers, and may lead to the shutdown of apps that drive traffic to Yelp's website.
• Yelp's actions may be motivated by a desire to control access to their data and prevent it from being used to train AI models, which could potentially disrupt their business model.
• The incident highlights the risks of building a business on top of a third-party API, and the need for developers to have a plan in place in case the API terms change.
• Some commenters argue that Yelp's decision is a classic example of a company pulling up the ladder behind them, and that it is unfair to small developers who have contributed to Yelp's success.
• Others suggest that the incident is part of a larger trend of companies closing off access to their APIs and data, and that this could have negative consequences for innovation and the development of new services.
• There is disagreement about whether Yelp's actions are justified, with some arguing that the company has the right to charge for access to their data, and others arguing that the high cost of the license is excessive and will harm small developers.
• Some commenters believe that the government should intervene to regulate the use of APIs and data, and to prevent companies from abusing their market power to stifle innovation.