Reddit plans to test a logged-in-only experience in selected markets outside the US, eventually limiting what people without accounts can see. CEO Steve Huffman says requiring sign-in could help newcomers find relevant communities and improve engagement. It would also give Reddit more data for ad targeting, help protect its content from unauthorized use, and support compliance with regulations. The company has not decided exactly when visitors will face a firm login prompt; some access may remain for people arriving through shared links or search.
The change comes as Reddit reports a significant decline in search referrals, including a drop of more than one million visits per week during October. Huffman blames changes to Google, particularly AI-generated search features, arguing that they no longer send traffic to websites as conventional search did. Reddit has a reported $60 million annual data-licensing deal with Google for AI training, but the companies are in active discussions about its future, and Huffman says any agreement must offer fair value and serve Reddit’s long-term strategy. The company is also considering a more organized main feed and a possible private-browsing mode, partly to address users who repeatedly remove and reinstall its app.
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Reddit plans to test requiring users to log in, starting in select non-US markets in Q4, before deciding whether to expand the change globally. CEO Steve Huffman says logins will improve ad targeting, engagement, and data protection as search referrals decline. (arstechnica.com)
Google’s Custom Search JSON API stopped accepting new customers, and existing users must migrate by January 1, 2027. The guide compares replacement options and explains how to switch to Google Web Search or an Apify Actor that returns search results as JSON. (blog.apify.com)
Reddit will test making its experience primarily available to logged-in users, aiming to improve engagement and ad targeting while limiting AI scraping of its data. Search visitors can still view linked posts, but Reddit warns that declining search traffic could reduce daily users. (axios.com)
Sudo is a browser-based interactive experience that takes visitors through a wooded scene. After walking through the trees, the page shows a blank white screen. (sudo.com)
Cormac McCarthy’s Library site uses Anubis, a proof-of-work challenge designed to make large-scale AI scraping more expensive. The page says its JavaScript challenge failed to load and recommends reloading or disabling certain browser extensions. (cormacmccarthy.lib.utk.edu)
Reddit shares fell after its fourth-quarter sales forecast missed expectations, despite beating third-quarter earnings and revenue estimates. The company plans to test requiring users to log in as Google search referrals decline. (cnbc.com)
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