[JimDabell]

> 8% is typical for a franchise fee

I see many WordPress hosts use these trademarks in the same way WP Engine does.

How many of them are paying this typical 8% of monthly revenue fee?

[mthoms]

The source for that figure is literally "random person on twitter".

I'm not even joking. Matt reposted it earlier today.

https://x.com/sandro_groganz/status/1841437394236489874

[photomatt]

Other hosts have contributed significantly to WordPress.org and Automattic over the years, in a variety of arrangements. None have abused the WordPress and WooCommerce trademark as much as WP Engine has, hence our C&D against them.

[FireBeyond]

> Other hosts have contributed significantly to WordPress.org and Automattic over the years

In reverse order:

1. Why on earth are other hosts obligated to contribute to Automattic, their competitor, just because Automattic also contributes to the open source project?

2. You have, on multiple recent occasions, spelt out unequivocally that WordPress.org is YOU, and not the Foundation. Again, why on earth are WordPress hosts obligated to contribute to you?

[tky]

The more Matt tries to explain himself, the more this looks like a protection racket.

[camgunz]

A couple posts up is claiming Mullenweg's singling out WP Engine, and here you're claiming he runs a protection racket against anyone who wants to make money running WordPress sites. Which is it?

[tky]

I said no such thing.

[camgunz]

It's hard for me to believe your idea of a racket is pressuring a single business. You can't have it both ways.

[ceejayoz]

I mean, a protection racket tends to start that way. Give someone prominent a thumping with relative impunity, use the threat of that to get everyone else to comply

[camgunz]

Sure but which is it: Mullenweg behaves like a mafia boss extracting concessions from anyone trying to build a business on WordPress, or he's unfairly singling out WP Engine?

I'm not 100% in the tank for Mullenweg, there's some inconsistencies I find troubling. But WordPress is an incredible, open project. Mullenweg's built an admirable community and business. There are so, so many WordPress hosting sites, and they're doing great. Mullenweg has outlined his issues w/ WP Engine (they turn off history). Does anyone honestly think a private equity firm would do better than he has? Does anyone in all these WordPress threads truly believe a good outcome here is PE firms can do as they like, giving back relatively very little to the community and slowly diluting the trademark? Who thinks this is sustainable? Who in his position would let this happen?

[JimDabell]

I didn’t ask about “a variety of arrangements” though, I asked about the terms you describe as “typical”.

[gamblor956]

Seriously, you need to stop talking.

You've admitted a number of times in this thread that you consider the nonprofit organization to be just an extension of the for profit company. There are serious consequences for that for the organizations and you personally.

[cdolan]

Narrator: Zero

Source: Matt