American web hosting provider WP Engine has launched a serious lawsuit against WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg and the company he runs, Automattic, alleging defamation, blackmail and trademark infringement. In the lawsuit filed in US federal court, WP Engine alleges that Automattic and its CEO, Mullenweg, abused their power, created conflicts of interest and sought unfair advantage through trademark disputes. The company states that the purpose of this lawsuit is to protect not only itself, but also the WordPress community.
The claims lie at the heart of trademark and licensing disputes between WP Engine and Automattic. Debates over the open source nature of WordPress software and its commercial use have long pitted both parties against each other. While WP Engine offers hosting services to its customers using open source WordPress software, Automattic provides similar services through WordPress.com. However, trademark violations and licensing disputes between the two companies in recent weeks have brought the events to the court level.
License fee and trademark claims
The events started with discussions about whether WP Engine should use the open source software of the WordPress project for commercial purposes and pay any licensing fees in return. Mullenweg criticized WP Engine harshly on his personal blog, claiming that the company was harming the WordPress ecosystem. Following this statement, WP Engine sent a warning to Mullenweg and demanded that she retract her comments. However, this move increased tension even further. Automattic claimed that WP Engine infringed on the WordPress and WooCommerce trademarks, demanding eight percent of its monthly revenue from the company as royalties.
The lawsuit filed by WP Engine includes a total of 11 accusations against Mullenweg and Automattic. These include libel, libel, attempted blackmail, trademark infringement, and conduct that violates the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). Additionally, WP Engine alleges that WordPress Foundation failed to disclose ownership of its trademarks to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and that Mullenweg provided misleading information about it.
One of the key points raised by WP Engine throughout the lawsuit is accusations that Mullenweg manipulated the WordPress community for his own business interests, creating conflicts of interest. In the company’s statement, it is stated that such behavior of Mullenweg harms the transparency and reliability of the WordPress ecosystem. In addition, WP Engine emphasizes that the decision to file a lawsuit is not only for the purpose of protecting its own interests, but also for the concern that the WordPress community may be negatively affected by this situation.
Mullenweg and Automattic have not yet made a detailed statement on the issue. However, it is predicted that the case will not only be between these two major technology companies, but may have serious effects on the future of the widely used WordPress software. In particular, it seems that how the balance between commercial use and open source philosophy will be maintained will be shaped as a result of such cases. The WordPress community and its users are carefully following the effects of these developments on open source projects.