WordPress the nuclear button
CEO’s aggressive behaviour is shaking confidence in the web publishing giant
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WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg is not afraid of controversy
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icking a fight with one of the leading WordPress-hosting companies by describing it as “a cancer”; twice telling staff who disagreed with him to pack their bags and take a pay-off; threatening to effectively down tools on the development of WordPress itself. It’s been a tumultuous few months for the co-founder of WordPress, Matt Mullenweg, and it doesn’t seem to be getting any calmer.
Mullenweg’s dictatorial behaviour as the figurehead of WordPress is shaking confidence in his company, Automattic, and the future of the web publishing platform itself. Website owners are considering switching platforms, disgruntled staff are demanding a change of leadership, and there are rumours of a fork of WordPress, potentially creating a damaging split in the platform’s user base.
What on earth is happening to WordPress?
Mullenweg’s mission
The turmoil at WordPress kicked off in mid-September, when Mullenweg posted a blog attacking WP Engine, one of the biggest WordPress hosts in the business. Mullenweg accused the host of passing itself off as WordPress, claiming even his own mother was confused. Among other allegations, he also lambasted how little WP Engine contributed to the open-source WordPress, compared to his own WordPress host, Automattic. “They do about half a billion in revenue on top of WordPress and contribute back 40 hours a week, Automattic is a contributes back 3,915 hours a week,” he complained.