Explanation of the Conflict Between WordPress and WP Engine

The world of WordPress, one of the most popular platforms for building websites, is currently experiencing heated disputes. The main source of contention is the conflict between WordPress founder and Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg and the hosting provider WP Engine.

WordPress is a free, open-source platform that powers about 40% of all websites on the internet. Users can either install their own instance of WordPress or turn to service providers like Automattic or WP Engine for a more straightforward solution.

In mid-September, Mullenweg published a blog post calling WP Engine the "cancer of WordPress." He criticized the hosting service for disabling the ability for users to track post revision history, which he believes is essential for user data protection. He argues that WP Engine disables this feature by default to cut costs.

He also criticized WP Engine's investor, Silver Lake, for not contributing enough to open-source projects, adding that the use of the "WP" brand misleads users into thinking WP Engine is part of WordPress.

Legal Battle

In response to the criticism, WP Engine sent a cease-and-desist letter to Mullenweg and Automattic, demanding they retract their statements. They also claimed that their use of the WordPress trademark falls under fair use.

The company stated that Mullenweg threatened to employ a "scorched earth" approach against WP Engine if they did not agree to pay a significant percentage of their revenue for a license to use the WordPress trademark.

Automattic, in turn, responded with its own letter demanding WP Engine cease its alleged wrongdoing, asserting violations of the WordPress and WooCommerce trademark usage policies.

The WordPress Foundation also updated its trademark policy, criticizing WP Engine for misleading users with its service.

"While the abbreviation 'WP' is not trademarked by WordPress, its use may be misleading. Many people believe WP Engine is 'WordPress Engine' and officially affiliated with WordPress, but that is not the case. Despite its billion-dollar revenue, they have never donated to the WordPress Foundation," the updated policy stated.

WP Engine's Restrictions and Their Impact on the Community

Following this, Mullenweg banned WP Engine from accessing resources on WordPress.org. Although plugins and themes are licensed under open-source, their availability through services like WP Engine has come under threat. This disruption has affected many websites, leaving them vulnerable to attacks and preventing them from updating plugins and themes. The community reacted negatively to this situation, as smaller websites found themselves defenseless.

WP Engine expressed dissatisfaction, claiming that Mullenweg was abusing his position by hindering WP Engine's customers from accessing WordPress.org resources.

"Matt Mullenweg's actions create unprecedented difficulties for the entire WordPress ecosystem, affecting not just WP Engine and our customers but all plugin developers who rely on WP Engine's tools," the company stated.

On September 27, WordPress.org temporarily allowed WP Engine access to resources until October 1.

Mullenweg explained that the confrontation is solely about trademarks, adding that Automattic has long tried to mediate licensing issues, but WP Engine's only response has been to "deceive us."

Other projects and the WordPress community are concerned that similar actions could be taken against them and are calling for clear explanations from Automattic regarding the use of the "WordPress" trademark.

The WordPress Foundation has also applied to register the trademarks "Managed WordPress" and "Hosted WordPress," raising concerns among developers that this could impact their activities.

John O'Nolan, the founder of the Ghost content management system, criticized the situation, stating that WordPress should not be controlled by one person.

"The web needs more independent organizations and diversity. 40% of the web and 80% of the CMS market should not be controlled by one person," he noted.

On September 30, just a day before the ban on WP Engine from WordPress.org was set to expire, the company updated its website's footer, emphasizing that it has no direct connection to the WordPress Foundation.

"WP Engine is a proud participant and supporter of the WordPress® community. The WordPress® trademark is owned by the WordPress Foundation, and Woo® and WooCommerce® are owned by WooCommerce, Inc. The mention of the names WordPress®, Woo®, and WooCommerce® on our website is for identification purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the WordPress Foundation or WooCommerce, Inc. WP Engine is not endorsed or affiliated with these organizations," the updated site description stated.

The company also changed the names of its plans from "Essential WordPress," "Core WordPress," and "Enterprise WordPress" to "Essential," "Core," and "Enterprise."

In its statement, WP Engine indicated that it made these changes to counter Automattic's claims.

"We, like the entire WordPress community, use the WordPress trademark to describe our business. Automattic's assertion that we need a license for this is incorrect and demonstrates a misunderstanding of trademark law," a company representative told TechCrunch.

On October 1, the company announced the successful deployment of its own solution for plugin and theme updates.