A brief history of APIs

Abstract

Through their application programming interfaces (APIs), online platforms such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter provide a wide range of data for scientific research. Nevertheless, APIs are under the control of their providers, and as such, they are not always compatible with scientific criteria. Recently, access restrictions have been intensively discussed under headings such as “post-API age” and “APIcalypse”. Against this backdrop, the chapter traces the development of APIs by distinguishing three periods. During the first period, of construction, the various platforms established their APIs. An ecosystem of mashups, clients and organisations evolved. In the following period, of conquest, the providers worked on securing their influence by strategic acquisitions and by placing restrictions on their APIs. APIs developed as control instruments, used for economic growth. In the third period, of concern, the political dimension of the APIs became apparent, and social media platforms transformed into data intermediaries. While these interfaces allow structured and convenient access to communication data on online platforms, APIs are not neutral research instruments but instead scientists find themselves embedded in the ecology of the data. Scientific results based on API data therefore not only reflect user behaviour but also the platforms’ mechanisms and the scientists’ decisions.