Personally, I don't have a problem with the changes. I only started on the platform a little over a month ago, actually just before the changes were announced, so I was fortunate enough to be admitted into the Partner Program right away. I don't have much to say about the referral program honestly as I've never tried it. But the 100 followers requirement by the end of the year really just doesn't seem like a big deal to me. I'm sure many will disagree, but as long as a writer is publishing quality content and is engaging with others in an honest way (no fake reads, etc), 100 followers isn't an onerous requirement and can be reached quite easily.