Automattic files counterclaims against WP Engine in WordPress lawsuit, alleging trademark misuse

Friday, The WordPress.com builder is automated filed of Counterclaim in Lawsuit initiated by hosting company WP Engine in October 2024which accused Automattic and its CEO Matt Mullenweg, Defamation and abuse of power. Automatic believes that WP Engine is misusing the WordPress trademark and engaging in deceptive marketing practices without properly giving back to the open source community.

Consequently, automatic Action taken Last year against WP Engine, which includes calling The hosting provider is a “cancer to WordPress” and the one that sent it turn off The letter claims that WP Engine has violated its trademark usage rules. The battle continues, automatically forbidden WP Engine has attempted to prevent access to WordPress.org resources and negotiate a licensing agreement with the host. Automattic claims the company barred it by negotiating in bad faith.

WP Engine eventually sued Automate, portraying itself as the victim of Mullenweg’s attack. But in Automatic’s account of events, after private equity firm Silver Lake invested $250 million in WP Engine, it went from fair use to trademark infringement by calling itself a “WordPress technology company” and referring to its partners as “WordPress Engine.”

Automatic notes that the hosting company has also launched products with names like “Core WordPress” and “Headless WordPress” and claims to its customers that it has committed 5% of its resources to supporting the WordPress ecosystem. Automatic says it never keeps those promises. Automattic alleged that the trademark infringement was willful, saying that WP Engine only “pretended to engage in licensing negotiations, but actually delayed and negotiated in bad faith.”

Silver Lake plays a central role in the counterclaim, implying that the private equity firm’s interests dictate much of WP Engine’s behavior. Specifically, the counterclaims allege that WP Engine engages in trademark infringement because paying licensing fees would affect the company’s earnings and valuation and, therefore, Silver Lake’s expected returns.

The counterclaims also allege that Silver Lake was looking to offload WP Engine for $2 billion, but could not find a buyer. Notably, the filing says this includes “automatic overtures.”

Automattic also claims that WP Engine has degraded consumer experience and product quality in an effort to cut costs during this time by removing essential features.

WP Engine responded to the counterclaim with the following statement:

“WP Engine’s use of the WordPress trademark to refer to open-source software is consistent with long-standing industry practice and fair use under settled trademark law, and we will defend against these baseless claims.”