A new website called WP Engine Tracker has become the latest flashpoint in the escalating legal and business feud between WP Engine and Automattic. The site, created by Automattic, tracks the number of websites that have left the WP Engine.
The site’s URL, WordPressenginetracker.com, is a pointed jab at WP Engine, as Automattic has previously argued that the company misuses the WordPress trademark.
WP Engine Tracker reports that over 16,000 websites have switched from WP Engine to other hosting providers since the feud began in September. According to an Automattic spokesperson, the site aims to provide transparency, showcasing how WP Engine’s customer base reacts to recent developments in the dispute.
“That public data has shown that ever since WP Engine filed its lawsuit – making it clear that they do not have an official association with WordPress and attracting greater attention to the company’s poor service, modifications to the WordPress core software, increasing and convoluted pricing structure, and repeated down times – their customers have left their platform for other hosting providers,” an Automattic spokesperson told TechCrunch.
Automattic’s move to create WP Engine Tracker follows a legal battle after WP Engine declined to pay a trademark licensing fee. Mullenweg had reportedly requested 8% of WP Engine’s revenue in exchange for using the WordPress trademark, a move WP Engine contested.
WP Engine subsequently filed a lawsuit, arguing that Automattic had Mullenweg’s actions misrepresented their offerings and threatened WP Engine’s business.
The rivalry is spilling onto social media as well. Automattic and Mullenweg have been using WordPress’s official handle on X to promote other hosting options and share offers, openly encouraging WP Engine’s customers to consider alternatives.
This conflict has also reached the courts, with Automattic filing documents last week to dismiss certain claims in WP Engine’s lawsuit and seeking to deny WP Engine’s motion to regain access to WordPress.org, a repository owned by Automattic.
The court filings also reveal that WP Engine is referencing Mullenweg’s recent comments to argue that Automattic’s campaign could have unfairly influenced customer decisions.
In October, Automattic asked WordCamp — local events held by WordPress users — to surrender their social media credentials.
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