Automattic to Scale Back WordPress Contributions Amid Legal Battles

Automattic, the company behind WordPress, recently announced that it will be reducing its contributions to the WordPress project. This decision comes after a legal battle with WP Engine, a company focused on WordPress site hosting. Automattic stated that this move is a result of the imbalance in contributions to WordPress, which is causing harm to the overall project. Additionally, the company has faced criticism, particularly towards its founder, Matt Mullenweg, who has been using the company as a platform for virtual disputes and wars with other recognized entities and personalities in the industry.

Automattic has now shifted its focus to its funded projects, such as WordPress.com, Pressable, WPVIP, Jetpack, and WooCommerce. At the same time, the company will adjust its contributions to WordPress to be on par with other contributors, dedicating at least 45 hours per week to security and critical updates.

In the same statement, Automattic also points fingers at the legal actions taken against WP Engine, claiming that these actions diverted the team’s attention away from contributing to the growth of WordPress. However, the company does not mention that it initiated the legal battle with WP Engine without any apparent reason.

The message from Automattic concludes with a promise to resume contributing to WordPress as a whole in the future, once all legal actions involving the company are resolved. Unfortunately, the timeline for this resolution remains unknown.

The community has been highly critical of Automattic’s actions, particularly those of Matt Mullenweg, who has been leveraging the WordPress brand for personal disputes. Many believe that these actions are detrimental to the long-term success of the project, which is significant considering that WordPress powers some of the largest websites on the internet.

It’s clear that Automattic’s decision to reduce contributions to WordPress has sparked controversy within the community. With the future of the project hanging in the balance, it remains to be seen how this situation will unfold and whether the company will be able to regain the trust and support of the WordPress community.