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Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

automattic.com

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Re: Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

#12

Post by mikepurvis »

nickff wrote: post #7
handfuloflight wrote: post #2

Your honor, I'd like to enter in Exhibit 0 into the records: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GYPsyoSbwAACO7X?format=jpg&name=... Furthermore, apparently Automattic invested money into WP Engine in 2011? Since the principals of Automattic and the Wordpress Foundation are the same, why did they not call trademark violations then (or negotiate a royalty deal for the use of the marks)? https://techcrunch.com/2011/11/15/silve…

Out of curiosity, I looked at WP Engine's website, and counted thirty uses of "WordPress" (before I stopped counting), as well as at least a few uses of "WooCommerce". I am only casually following this dispute, but WP Engine does seem to be using the branding. That said, "WordPress" may be descriptive (I'm not sure whether it is). edit: I did not address the investment component of the parent comment, as that was add…

I agree. The complaint here isn’t about WP, it’s about the full trademark being used without the repeated asterisk being used to call out that it’s a name owned by a different entity and used with permission / under fair use.

Re: Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

#15

Post by aimazon »

jchw wrote: post #10

I know we're not going to get a response, but I'm really curious to hear what the explanation for the allegations covered by WP Engine's Cease and Desist sent to Automattic just yesterday, before this one: https://wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Cease-and-De... There's two sides to every story but sincerely, something seems... very wrong.

Matt has a reputation for flying off the handle, a smaller scale Elon Musk. Matt has been trying to get WPE to contribute more to the Wordpress project for years. Last week Matt heard that WPE were pressuring employees to stay silent about WPEs internals and so he flew off the handle and started throwing everything at the wall… thus, the festering resentment towards WPE for their lack of contributions to the project became the basis of all the things he’s throwing. Demand for payment was the easiest thing in reach. That didn’t work, and now trademark infringement claim is the easiest legal-shaped thing in reach. There’s no deeper explanation than man throws things.

The Wordpress foundation is Matt. Automattic is Matt. For all the pomp and circumstance, Wordpress is just Matt doing whatever he wants unchecked. Hence the trademark pages of the Wordpress website mysteriously changing today to reflect the version of reality needed to make this case stronger.

Wrong? Maybe. Consistent? Yes.

Re: Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

#16

Post by sharphall »

handfuloflight wrote: post #2

Your honor, I'd like to enter in Exhibit 0 into the records: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GYPsyoSbwAACO7X?format=jpg&name=... Furthermore, apparently Automattic invested money into WP Engine in 2011? Since the principals of Automattic and the Wordpress Foundation are the same, why did they not call trademark violations then (or negotiate a royalty deal for the use of the marks)? https://techcrunch.com/2011/11/15/silve…

For comparison, the text of the screenshotted web page (https://wordpressfoundation.org/trademark-policy/) now reads:

> The abbreviation “WP” is not covered by the WordPress trademarks, but please don’t use it in a way that confuses people. For example, many people think WP Engine is “WordPress Engine” and officially associated with WordPress, which it’s not. They have never once even donated to the WordPress Foundation, despite making billions of revenue on top of WordPress.

This is kind of a wild change. And the change of tone about "WP" aside, it is very strange to make complaints like this on a trademark policy page of all places.

This whole thing is very bizarre and not a great look.

Re: Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

#17

Post by marcellus23 »

sharphall wrote: post #16
handfuloflight wrote: post #2

Your honor, I'd like to enter in Exhibit 0 into the records: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GYPsyoSbwAACO7X?format=jpg&name=... Furthermore, apparently Automattic invested money into WP Engine in 2011? Since the principals of Automattic and the Wordpress Foundation are the same, why did they not call trademark violations then (or negotiate a royalty deal for the use of the marks)? https://techcrunch.com/2011/11/15/silve…

For comparison, the text of the screenshotted web page ( https://wordpressfoundation.org/trademark-policy/ ) now reads: > The abbreviation “WP” is not covered by the WordPress trademarks, but please don’t use it in a way that confuses people. For example, many people think WP Engine is “WordPress Engine” and officially associated with WordPress, which it’s not. They have never once even donated to the WordPress Found…

Wow that reads incredibly petty, almost childish. And "billions of revenue"?

Re: Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

#18

Post by rstupek »

aimazon wrote: post #15
jchw wrote: post #10

I know we're not going to get a response, but I'm really curious to hear what the explanation for the allegations covered by WP Engine's Cease and Desist sent to Automattic just yesterday, before this one: https://wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Cease-and-De... There's two sides to every story but sincerely, something seems... very wrong.

Matt has a reputation for flying off the handle, a smaller scale Elon Musk. Matt has been trying to get WPE to contribute more to the Wordpress project for years. Last week Matt heard that WPE were pressuring employees to stay silent about WPEs internals and so he flew off the handle and started throwing everything at the wall… thus, the festering resentment towards WPE for their lack of contributions to the project…

Did the page contents actually get changed?
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