Wednesday, December 25, 2024

Authorized ping-pong within the WordPress world continues as Automattic sends WP Engine a cease-and-desist letter alleging trademark infringement

The brouhaha within the WordPress group seems more likely to escalate right into a authorized battle round emblems.

Only a day after WordPress internet hosting service WP Engine despatched a cease-and-desist discover to Automattic asking its CEO to cease publicly trashing WP Engine, now Automattic has despatched its personal cease-and-desist letter to WP Engine, saying the latter has infringed a number of emblems like WordPress and WooCommerce.

This comes after Matt Mullenweg, the CEO of Automattic and co-creator of WordPress, final week criticized WP Engine for profiteering off the open-source WordPress mission, referred to as it a “most cancers to WordPress,” and accused the corporate of contributing little or no to the group.

In its letter dated Monday, Automattic alleged that WP Engine has constructed a enterprise of over $400 million in income based mostly on unauthorized use of its WordPress trademark, which Automattic claims it has the unique industrial rights for from the WordPress Basis. Automattic additionally mentioned WP Engine has misled shoppers into believing that there’s a direct affliction between the 2 firms.

“Your unauthorized use of our Consumer’s emblems infringes on their rights and dilutes their well-known and well-known marks. Damaging opinions and feedback relating to WP Engine and its choices are imputed to our Consumer, thereby tarnishing our Consumer’s manufacturers, harming their popularity, and damaging the goodwill our Consumer has established in its marks,” the letter learn.

“Your unauthorized use of our Consumer’s mental property has enabled WP Engine to compete with our Consumer unfairly, and has led to unjust enrichment and undue earnings,” it added.

Automattic can also be demanding compensation for the earnings made by WP Engine through the use of its emblems, and mentioned that if WP Engine doesn’t amicably clear up the matter, the corporate has the best to file a civil injunction case.

For context, right here’s a great abstract of the WordPress group by my colleague Paul Sawers:

WordPress powers greater than 40% of the online, and whereas any particular person or firm is free to take the open supply mission and run a web site themselves, plenty of companies have sprung as much as promote internet hosting companies and technical experience off the again of it. These embrace Automattic, which Mullenweg arrange in 2005 to monetize the mission he’d created two years earlier; and WP Engine, a managed WordPress internet hosting supplier that has raised practically $300 million in funding over its 14-year historical past, the majority of which got here through a $250 million funding from non-public fairness agency Silver Lake in 2018.

Within the cease-and-desist letter WP Engine despatched to Automattic on Monday, the corporate defended its proper to make use of the “WordPress” trademark beneath honest use legal guidelines. The corporate added that Automattic has “a profound misunderstanding of each trademark legislation and WordPress Basis’s trademark coverage.”

It additionally mentioned Mullenweg demanded WP Engine pay Automattic “a big proportion of its gross revenues — tens of tens of millions of {dollars} in reality — on an ongoing foundation” for a license to make use of emblems like “WordPress.”

“When his outrageous monetary calls for weren’t met, Mr. Mullenweg carried out his threats by making repeated false claims disparaging WP Engine to its staff, its clients, and the world,” WP Engine’s letter mentioned.

Notably, Automattic’s letter doesn’t point out Mullenweg’s remarks about WP Engine.

Within the final week, Mullenweg has accused WP Engine of not contributing sufficient to the group and providing “an affordable knock-off” model of WordPress. WP Engine pushed again in opposition to this characterization and referred to as out Mullenweg for launching a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the corporate, saying it has already affected a few of its enterprise.

This is likely to be the beginning of a protracted authorized tussle between the 2 entities. A number of people additionally identified that this battle is likely to be dangerous for suppliers providing specialised WordPress internet hosting.

Earlier right now, WordPress Basis modified its Trademark Coverage web page to name out WP Engine:

“The abbreviation “WP” just isn’t coated by the WordPress emblems, however please don’t use it in a method that confuses folks. For instance, many individuals suppose WP Engine is “WordPress Engine” and formally related to WordPress, which it’s not. They’ve by no means as soon as even donated to the WordPress Basis, regardless of making billions of income on prime of WordPress,” the up to date web page reads.

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