In a filing, WP Engine asks a court in Northern California to issue a preliminary injunction and restore its access to the WordPress.org open source repository
which are gross mischaracterizations of reality—and reserves all of our rights. Automattic is confident in our legal position and will vigorously litigate against this baseless filing, as well as Forums: r/technology : WP Engine asks court to stop Matt Mullenweg from blocking access to WordPress resources
TechCrunchIvan Mehta
Context & Ripple Effects
The injunction request escalates WP Engine’s earlier California lawsuit from allegations over control and conduct into a bid for immediate access to shared WordPress.org infrastructure. It follows public disagreement over licensing, including Mullenweg’s statement that Automattic had pursued a deal with WP Engine.
The dispute matters because WordPress.org is both an open-source project hub and a practical dependency for companies building commercial WordPress services. Later coverage of a court order barring continued access restrictions underscores how consequential repository and plugin access became in the case.
First-order effects
WP Engine asks the Northern California court to restore its WordPress.org repository access while the broader litigation proceeds, putting the access restriction itself before the judge on an expedited basis.
Automattic must defend its ability to restrict WP Engine’s use of WordPress.org resources; it has characterized the request as baseless and says it will litigate.
Second-order effects
The request creates immediate operational uncertainty for WP Engine and its customers where repository or plugin access is necessary for maintaining WordPress deployments, pending a court decision.
Other commercial WordPress providers gain a clearer test of whether access to project-operated resources can be conditioned amid trademark, licensing, or competitive disputes.
Third-order effects
If courts constrain unilateral access restrictions, open-source project operators may face stronger pressure to separate community infrastructure governance from commercial disputes involving major ecosystem participants.
The case highlights a broader unresolved boundary: open-source code may be broadly available, while the services that distribute, update, and govern that code can still become concentrated control points.
The trend: Commercial conflict around open source is increasingly shifting from code licenses alone to control over the infrastructure and governance layers that make ecosystems usable.
WPE has filed for a preliminary injunction against Automattic to have the hijacked ACF plugin listing returned and access to update their plugins restored. Immensely reasonable. I hope the court grants the request swiftly. https://storage.courtlistener.com/ ...
@dhh Apple pulled this type of thing with 37 Signals, and one day Vercel, Heroku or someone else may attack Rails. WPE are the aggressors here and taking the side of a large corporate against an open source community isn't the flex you think it is.
Here's something that bugs me since last month. I, as well as all my colleagues at @automattic, have been openly disclosing where I work. To some people, it means I am biased, to others that we have different perspectives, and that's fine. You can listen, rebuke, ignore what I
@photomatt is one of the nicest, principled, hard working people I know. There would be no @wordpress without him. @wpengine benefits greatly from the work @photomatt and @automattic put into @WordPress , contributes nothing back and is now outraged that Matt doesn't want to
I am surprised people are reacting as if WP Engine's intent wasn't originally to suggest an affiliation with @WordPress. And WP Engine isn't some mom and pop developer. It is owned by Silverlake, one of the biggest PE firms in the world. I am with @photomatt on this one.
@PeterJThomson @dhh You have it all backwards. Automattic is the agressor here, and breaking open source ethics. WP Engine was minding their business developing heavily used WordPress plugins, then Automattic kicked in the door, took their plugin and all users. https://blog.pragm…
@photomatt @automattic Listen up @automattic employees, Audrey Capital users... and everyone else attacking WPEngine... this highlighted section is YOU [image]
The entire complaint is worth reading. Obviously this is the presentation of the case from the plaintiff's side, but it's well argued and well written. Good recap of the whole timeline and the crazy, norm breaking behavior from Automattic. [image]
WP Engine is collapsing as we speak. 14% increase in cancellations. 333 fewer new contracts YoY. 29% drop in new customers. 375% spike in migration plugin installations. This needs to stop asap if anyone is to ever trust WordPress again. [image]
Looks like WPEngine just filed a motion for preliminary injunction against @photomatt and @automattic #WordPress https://storage.courtlistener.com/ ...
@p3ob7o @automattic I have zero connection to WPE. I've been a user, builder, and fan of WP since 2012. Matt was a business hero of mine. I even applied to work at Automattic back in the day. I was on Matt's side after his speech. I believe Matt is fully in the wrong at this poin…
WPE is taking the high road. They still managed to slip a “Matt is nuckin futs.” in there though. :) Looking forward to seeing how this plays out. Investing heavily in Orville Redenbacher.
The wildest part of the whole ordeal is just how much evidence of malfeasance and bad faith has been entered into the public record through interviews, tweets, and blog posts. WPE's lawyers merely have to quote these to paint a devastating picture of Automattic's actions.
WP Engine filed an injunction today to get its access restored to the https://wordpress.org/ repository. In a declaration, WP Engine CEO Heather Brunner said, “Until very recently, I had been under the impression that https://wordpress.org/ was associated with or owned by the
Automattic's response: “Automattic vehemently denies WP Engine's allegations—which are gross mischaracterizations of reality—and reserves all of our rights. Automattic is confident in our legal position and will vigorously litigate against this baseless filing, as well as