I think that stating it as 48 hours was smart. Because if subreddits start saying it’s indefinite, then they have time to start replacing mods and shutting the protest down. Whereas here, 48 hours will pass. They lose a lot of money in just 2 days. And if nothing changes, you’ll likely see decreased quality and/or continued protest.

I think it left room at the table for reddit to cooperate. It’s a common bargaining thing.