I'm not sure if I buy this. /r/videos was the first sub to go dark early and hasn't been brought back. If the admin were really going in and forcing subs to open you'd think they'd start with the sub that started everything and actually got coverage. Not some random subs.
It could be the smaller subs for precisely that reason. /r/videos is high-profile, and is likely to kick a fit, so smaller subs would be a better testing ground, to see what the reception is, before steamrolling the others.
Start with smaller subs and then the bigger ones lose momentum and support too. I also wouldn't put it past reddit to use astroturfing and bots to change the overall vibe and make it seem people are against protests, but it seems like people are addicted and dumb enough on their own and want it to stop. The "malicious compliance" ones are still generating traffic and being active on reddit so this is already compromising that is defeating the purpose too.
If I were Reddit, I'd first target subs who aren't able to fight back well. Then, after I've proved that I'm serious and not bluffing, I'll go after bigger subs. This is why many subs are allowing submissions again. In their sticky posts, they often mention that Reddit isn't bluffing.
This is the best malicious compliance so far, still reddit could 'force' them to remove the approval restriction.
But subreddits like pics doing the john oliver thing are completely missing the point, reddit dont care if they do that, it's still getting thousands of views and upvotes because its 'cool and funny', its such a 'we did it reddit' moment. Just stop using reddit, let the subreddits go to shit with no moderation, make a sticky linking to alternatives.
I think it will have the opposite effect people want. It will drive traffic to reddit to see the funny pics, it wont suddenly stop the masses using reddit, a garbage experience has to occur for that.
I think it's a bit more than enjoyment. People felt a sense of ownership in the communities they helped build. And whilst they were always contributing to Reddit inc they still felt some control. Now that Spez has gone full on world's dumbest capitalist and keeps yelling about companies having to pay for "his" data, data which he didn't pay for himself, it's really exposed what's always been true. That Reddit is just another company, it's not your friend, it's not a community.