I’ve seen many comments and posts regarding the API fiasco on Reddit, with the claim that there will be a huge influx of users when that happens. I’m all for it, but I find it hard to believe that the average or even above average user will make the effort to switch.
Probably there would be a spike compared to the normal number of new daily signups, but I don’t see millions of people coming. At least it’s somewhat partially depends on mod decisions - While some have succumbed to Reddit’s threats and will probably remain there, others have explicitly stated in /r/ModCoord that they fully intend to quit. Probably some subreddits will have suckers willing to volunteer even knowing how Reddit doesn’t give a damn about them, while other might remain unmoderated. According to ModCoord a few large subreddits have been closed or archived due to all mods leaving and nobody replacing them (at least not yet). If some of the said mods decide to come here and post a pinned message in the old subreddit with a link before restricting it then it might bring new people.