The dispute between WP Engine and Automattic that erupted in September and October has been difficult to watch. Filter works with clients on WP Engine and WordPress VIP. We ship free plugins. When the two companies started trading cease-and-desist letters and legal filings, there wasn’t a clean side to stand on.
First, the facts. Automattic revoked WP Engine’s access to the WordPress.org plugin directory in late September, citing trademark and commercial use violations in WP Engine’s marketing. WP Engine disputed that characterisation and filed for a temporary restraining order. Automattic’s legal team pushed back hard. The matter remained unresolved through October, but access hasn’t been restored.
Both companies used language that was unbecoming. Automattic’s founder Matt Mullenweg published a post that read as a personal attack more than a business statement. WP Engine’s response was measured by comparison, but the underlying claim that they’re just trying to build a business in the WordPress ecosystem was difficult to argue against. The WordPress Foundation and various community members stepped in, but the core disagreement didn’t budge.
There were ways to handle this that didn’t involve revoking plugin directory access. A clear statement of what marketing language WP Engine could and couldn’t use. A cease-and-desist about specific practices rather than a broad exclusion. A public conversation about what the rules are.
I’m troubled by the precedent. The WordPress.org plugin directory is community infrastructure, not an Automattic property, regardless of who runs it technically. Removing a hosting platform’s access to that infrastructure because of a trademark dispute is using community infrastructure as a weapon in a commercial negotiation. Once that door opens, it’s hard to close.
The thing that’s stuck with me most is how much this dispute revealed about how the WordPress community exists in someone’s backyard, even if we all pretend it doesn’t. WordPress is free, and the trademark is enforceable, and the infrastructure is run by people with commercial interests.
I think this is going to take a long time to resolve and it’s not going to be pretty. But, I also think that regardless of this going on, it will become background noise, and day-to-day, we’ll pretty much carry on as before.