Understanding the impact of the Automattic and WP Engine legal battle

WordPress has always been known for its stability. With over 40% of websites using it as a content management system, it has cemented its place as one of the major success stories for open-source software. Supported by a thriving ecosystem of plugins, developers and businesses, it has always been a solid foundation to build your online presence. 

Recent events have made this foundation a little more precarious, and as is often the case, the end-user suffers most when large corporate entities wage war. 

In brief, the dispute is between Automattic, led by WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg, and WP Engine, one of the largest hosting providers in the WordPress space and backed by Silver Lake Private Equity. Automattic argues that WP Engine breaches its trademarks, confusing users over its affiliation with Automattic and the WordPress project. WP Engine has responded with a lawsuit, claiming libel, damaging comments, and accusing Mullenweg of threats to their business unless large licence fees were paid. 

The WordPress community, while divided on opinion, were largely unaffected by the looming legal showdown until the tit-for-tat escalation of both sides began to spill over directly into their products. 

This has included: 

1. WP Engine disabling the 'news' feed from all WordPress dashboards hosted on their platform. This was an attempt to hide the posts made by Matt Mullenweg via the official WordPress news and update channels. 

2. Automattic blocking all sites hosted on WP Engine from accessing plugins, themes and most importantly updates. Not only would this functionally break core aspects of WordPress, but potentially leave innocent users open to security issues. 

3. WP Engine employees are blocked from Automattic’s infrastructure, which means Advanced Custom Fields (ACF), a highly popular plugin for enhanced content management, cannot be updated through the WordPress plugin directory. 

4. Automattic has publicly disclosed a vulnerability in ACF against common convention without allowing WP Engine to release a patch, which they would not be able to do due to the ongoing blockade. 

These escalations have not necessarily seen support from Automattic employees, with 8% of employees taking a severance package based on their disagreement with Matt Mullenweg’s actions – described by the owner as an “Alignment Offer”.

Regardless of viewpoint, the golden rule should be to avoid burdening end users for legal disputes. 

Where does this leave site managers? 

At this early stage, it is difficult to say. Given the scale and backing of both organisations involved, it is very unlikely that one will collapse. However, it is likely that it will divert resources and talent away from both the WordPress project and WP Engine, which will only hurt consumers, stifling innovation and ultimately reducing the value of the respective platforms. 

What is clear in the short term is that Automattic and WordPress’s governance structures can no longer be viewed as cautious, stable and acting in the best interests of their users - which would include anyone who wishes to use, develop or host a WordPress site. Matt Mullenweg has been able to act alone without checks and balances, and retaliatory actions such as blocking updates for users who happened to host with a particular service is a concerning new reality.

End-users should not feel pressured to take sides or have their websites used as leverage in any ongoing disputes. If your primary concern is stability and you're not interested in the ideological aspects of the Automattic and WP Engine debate, it might be wise to consider switching your hosting provider away from WP Engine to avoid potential disruptions.

How can Brew Digital help?

At Brew Digital, we have invested in ensuring we are resilient to the fast-moving tides of the digital economy and can offer a safe harbour while these large entities take swings at one another. We have secure and reliable hosting partners to help you migrate to, or the expertise to set yourself up to be self-reliant on your own infrastructure. We can advise on proxying updates from the WordPress source repositories, which means that if anything were to happen, you would be isolated and continue to receive important updates. 

Or, if you are unsure and wish to gain clarity on the next steps, our Decision Sprint process is a great way to evaluate critical business decisions and prioritise those that will afford the most impactful change.