I just found out that WP Engine has been banned from WordPress.org. Anyone know more about what happened?
I’m not even a fan of WP Engine, but this situation is really going too far.
Logan said:
I’m not even a fan of WP Engine, but this situation is really going too far.
Short version: This is one business (WordPress as a business, not WordPress the open-source project) going after another business. It doesn’t really change much for developers like us. Think of it like a fight between a cable provider and a network over a contract dispute.
I don’t have an issue with it, as someone who used to be a WP Engine customer and still has clients on WP Engine. I’ve been using WordPress since version 1.0, so I’ve seen this stuff before.
Back around 2006, WP Engine targeted WordPress developers from the beginning. I remember getting free lifetime access for one domain from a WordCamp event, and again at SXSW in 2007. WP Engine wasn’t exactly branded as WordPress, but it was a huge part of their marketing.
I’ve had clients who mix up WP Engine and WordPress, thinking they can’t move their sites because ‘it won’t run WordPress’ anywhere else. I’ve also seen lots of posts on this forum and social media where people blame WordPress for things that were really WP Engine’s fault. For example, ‘it works fine on Dreamhost’ or ‘no issues on GoDaddy’ types of posts.
A few years ago, WP Engine was slow to roll out PHP 8.0 support when PHP 7.4 was about to go unsupported. They were behind Kinsta, Dreamhost, and other premium WordPress hosts. I had to move a major client to Kinsta because WP Engine couldn’t give me any solid answers.
WP Engine also buys up themes, plugins, and small developers. Recently, they bought NitroPack, which had been integrated into their Page Speed Boost add-on. The problem is, you can’t install NitroPack separately on WP Engine, and you get very limited options for customization: it either works or it doesn’t. One client’s SEO guy blamed Beaver Builder for slowing down the site, but the real issue was with WP Engine’s Page Speed Boost.
If WP Engine is only giving 40 hours a week back to the open-source project while making tons of money from WordPress and disabling core features, that’s not good for anyone.
So, WordPress (the business) kicked WP Engine out of the .org repository. It doesn’t really matter much: WP Engine customers can still get themes and plugins directly from their site.
@Aurora
Yeah, but WordPress.com is pretty clear that it has some limits compared to a self-hosted WordPress install. WordPress.com isn’t the same as WordPress.org.
>People criticize cable companies all the time
True, I haven’t had cable since 2014.
@Kelly
Yeah, but look at this:
>WordPress Without Limits
For someone unfamiliar with WordPress, that tagline alone is confusing.
@Kelly
>I don’t have a problem with this
So, you’re cool with one company changing the rules, calling out one specific competitor, and then punishing them under those new rules?
Rooney said:
@Kelly
>I don’t have a problem with this
So, you’re cool with one company changing the rules, calling out one specific competitor, and then punishing them under those new rules?
Yes, because I already explained why. Their issue is specifically with WP Engine, not Kinsta, not Dreamhost, not GoDaddy.
This will likely be sorted out soon, just like any other business-to-business spat.
@Kelly
>Their issue is specifically with WP Engine
Yet, I and other developers are the ones who have to deal with the fallout. Just because WP Engine isn’t perfect doesn’t mean Matt was justified in doing this.
This won’t be a quick fix. This will likely end up in court and drag on for a while.
@Kelly
>I’ve seen many posts on WordPress.org and other places blaming WP Engine for WordPress issues.
I’ve also seen people complain about WordPress in general for problems that actually stem from WordPress.com.
To be honest, if I didn’t know better, I’d assume only one of those platforms is about hosting WordPress.
@Kelly
>I don’t have a problem with this, as a former WP Engine customer…
Then you clearly don’t care about your clients still on WP Engine.
Matt is putting his own interests ahead of everyone using WordPress for their business. What if a plugin has a security flaw, and it can’t be updated because of his tantrum? Would you care then?
This smells like some shady tactics.
This whole thing is a mess.
I’m no fan of WP Engine, but Matt is making himself and WordPress look bad.
This is starting to get serious now.
“Man, what a jerk.”
Not looking forward to work tomorrow…
Matt’s being really petty.
Can someone explain what’s going on?
Grayson said:
Can someone explain what’s going on?
Matt is mad because WP Engine is making a lot of money, and he doesn’t think they’re contributing enough to the WordPress community. He demanded millions in back payments for using the ‘WP’ name (even though ‘WP’ isn’t trademarked), and WP Engine ignored him.
Matt retaliated by bad-mouthing them at WordCamp and publishing a post titled ‘WP Engine is not WordPress,’ which appeared in the WordPress dashboard. WP Engine blocked it, but now Matt has cut off WP Engine’s servers from wordpress.org, so they can’t get updates.
He’s basically throwing a public tantrum.
@ServerSavvy
Thanks!
But are they really required to contribute more? I freelance and make money using WordPress, but I’ve never contributed. Why is WP Engine different, just because they make more money?
@Grayson
There’s no real difference. His excuse is that ‘WP’ confuses people, but if that were true, a lot of companies would need to change their names.
I think he’s just bitter that WP Engine execs are richer than him. He built WordPress and after 20 years, he’s only ‘rich’ and not really rich. He even taunted WP Engine with photos from WordCamp, saying they could stop him from talking if they paid up.
He’s probably going to get sued by WP Engine and their users. If Automattic and the WP Foundation don’t remove him soon, this could seriously hurt WordPress.
@ServerSavvy
Here’s what the trademark policy says:
‘WP’ isn’t covered by the WordPress trademark, so you’re free to use it however you want.