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Medium is Stopping Legacy Referral Payments
Broken promises, or: The enshittification of yet another platform
Is this a late April Fools’ Day prank? Nope: Medium is actually going back on their word, and we have every right to be upset.
When the Medium Referral Program was depreciated in August 2023, Medium promised that
All member referrals created until September 1, 2023 will continue to be honored indefinitely.
“Indefinitely.” That means “forever,” unless my PhD in English has led me astray.
This promise is still listed on all of Medium’s Help Center articles, such as their page explaining how earnings are calculated:
Yet today many of us woke up to a concerning email titled, “Notification: Ending referred membership payouts.” Despite the promise to honour referrals indefinitely, Medium is ending those payments after this month, they announced today:
