WallStreetBets (WSB) founder Jaime Rogozinski is suing Reddit after being removed as moderator of the online community.
Key Details
- WSB is a subreddit on the online discussion and social-media platform Reddit. WSB discusses stock and option trading. The subreddit became well-known for its part in meme stocks like the GameStop short squeeze last year.
- Rogozinski created the subreddit in 2012 and served as one of the site’s moderators until being removed in April 2020.
- In his lawsuit, Rogozinski accuses Reddit of violating their contract by removing him as moderator and restricting his rights to trademark the WallStreetBets brand.
- Reddit representatives have called the lawsuit frivolous and say his claims have no foundation.
- “Jamie was removed as a moderator of r/WallStreetBets by Reddit and banned by the community moderators for attempting to enrich himself,” a Reddit spokesman says. “This lawsuit is another transparent attempt to enrich himself. It’s telling that he is filing this suit three years after he was banned from r/WallStreetBets and long after the community rose in mainstream popularity without his involvement.”
Why it’s news
Rogozinski’s lawsuit is the latest in a years-long struggle between the former moderator and the social-media company. The subreddit began as a place for users to discuss trading more casually. Rather than discussing strategy and wise investments, WSB essentially treats the stock market like gambling.
In 2020, as the subreddit’s popularity grew, Rogozinski published a book discussing how millennials treat the stock market like a casino. To support his thesis, he used anecdotal evidence from WSB. He also posted an Amazon link to the book on the WSB forum.
Some WSB users see Rogozinski’s book as an attempt to capitalize on the community. Others say he is “selling out.” By April 2020, Reddit informed Rogozinski that his account was suspended for “attempting to monetize a community,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
Rogozinski’s account was later restored, but he is still prohibited as a moderator. The remaining WSB moderators banned Rogozinski from the subreddit altogether.
After fighting Reddit’s decision for years, Rogozinski brought a lawsuit forward. He claims that the company has no policies that would prohibit him from promoting his book. In addition to the disagreement over monetization, Rogozinski and Reddit disagree over who owns the brand rights to WSB.
Shortly before his removal from Reddit, Rogozinski had filed a trademark application for “WALLSTREETBETS.” Later that year, Reddit filed an opposition. The social-media company claimed that the subreddit is “a valuable asset of Reddit, and Reddit has amassed tremendous goodwill and rights through Reddit’s widespread and continuous use.”
Rogozinski argues that he is an integral part of the brand and the story of the subreddit.
Since the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates in 2022, activity on the subreddit has started to slow. Still, the community has around 13.6 million subscribers and is one of Reddit’s 50 largest forums.
Current moderators of the forum say that the subreddit is better without Rogozinski, The Wall Street Journal reports.
“WallStreetBets has become incredibly vibrant and more intelligent since Jartek (Rogozinski) left,” the community moderators say.