Google has submitted its proposal to address the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust lawsuit, which accuses the company of monopolistic practices in search. Google disagrees with the court’s initial decision and plans to appeal. However, as part of the legal process, Google and the DOJ must present remedy proposals. Background In October 2020, the DOJ … Read more
WP Engine regained control of their Advanced Custom Forms plugin and login access to WordPress.org. Matt Mullenweg responded by expressing that he is “disgusted and sickened.” Mullenweg tweeted about how he felt about how things turned out: “I’m disgusted and sickened by being legally forced to provide free labor and services to @wpengine, a dangerous … Read more
Automattic removed a spreadsheet containing the domain names of WP Engine customers from the WP Engine Tracker website. The removal is in response to a preliminary injunction granted to WP Engine, ordering Automattic and Matt Mullenweg to remove the spreadsheet within 72 hours. The preliminary injunction was warmly received on X (formerly Twitter), a tweet … Read more
A judge ruled in WP Engine’s favor in their request for a preliminary injunction against Automattic and Matt Mullenweg. The court agreed that WP Engine will suffer irreparable harm if the injunction is not granted and giving the defendants (Automattic and Mullenweg) 72 hours to return things to the way they were as of September … Read more
Automattic quietly updated the WP Engine Tracker website with an activity log showing a continuously updated list of domains that have switched away from managed WordPress host, WP Engine. This update is part of Mullenweg’s self-described “nuclear war” against WP Engine, with the Tracker site actively promoting competitors by offering links to their hosting promotions. WP … Read more
WP Engine had their day in court, but it didn’t go entirely in their favor, as Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín ruled the request for a preliminary injunction was too vague. However, the judge said they were “inclined to grant some sort of injunction.” “That’s How You Set A Ransom” The attorney for plaintiff offered new details … Read more
WP Engine escalated its Federal complaint by citing Automattic’s publication of the WP Engine Tracker website as evidence of intent to harm WP Engine and exposing customers to potential cybercrimes. The updated complaint incorporates recent actions by Mullenweg to further strengthen their case. A spokesperson for WP Engine issued a statement to Search Engine Journal … Read more
Automattic’s WP Engine Tracker website was temporarily blocked by Cloudflare over the weekend as a suspected phishing site, sparking cheers from members of the WordPress subreddit. Meanwhile, someone registered the typosquatting domain WPEngineTracker.com to protest against Matt Mullenweg. Automattic, presumably under the direction of Matt Mullenweg, recently created a website called WP Engine Tracker on … Read more
As a startup founder or marketing leader, you’ve likely heard the mantra “distribution is everything.” But what does that really mean, and how do you put it into practice? Building a great product is hard, but it’s only half the battle. The real challenge is getting that product in front of the right customers — … Read more
Automattic appears to have created a site that draws attention to the number of customers that have left WP Engine for another web host. The site includes a searchable database of websites hosted on WP Engine that can also be downloaded as a CSV spreadsheet. The name of the website is WP Engine Tracker, it … Read more
Lawyers for Matt Mullenweg and Automattic filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit from WP Engine, offering a different perspective on the dispute’s underlying causes. The motion to dismiss claims that the one causing harm isn’t Mullenweg and Automattic but WP Engine, asserting that WP Engine is compelling the defendant to provide resources and support … Read more
Dear Readers, SEO Pros, and Digital Marketers, Hello, I’m Jenise. I’ve been at the SEJ helm for 15 years, with Loren Baker and Brent Csutoras at my side as majority owners and operating partners. Yesterday, I woke up to a monumental piece of news: SEO news publisher Search Engine Land was purchased by marketing tool … Read more
Matt Mullenweg posted on WordPress.org that WP Engine users have been granted a reprieve from the block on the WordPress plugin and theme repository until October 1st, allowing them to access updates as usual. WordPress Versus WP Engine Matt Mullenweg and popular web host WP Engine have been locked in a conflict for the past … Read more
WordPress banned WP Engine, a managed WordPress web host, blocking thousands of websites from adding or updating plugins and themes. Technology writer Robert Scoble described the decision as “universally hated in tech” and that out of hundreds of posts on the subject almost none was on Mullenweg’s side on the issue. What Happened Matt Mullenweg, … Read more
Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress and CEO of Automattic announced on Reddit that WP Engine initiated legal action against WordPress, Automattic, and Mullenweg himself. Mullenweg wrote that WordPress is countersuing. WP Engine is a leading managed WordPress host provider that Mullenweg alleges is violating the WordPress trademark. Mullenweg’s comments came in a Reddit thread titled … Read more
There’s no debate that when it comes to succeeding in digital content, mastering SEO is a must. When I first became a content writer, most of the advice I received was about keywords, backlinks, relevancy, and improving user experience. However, as technology has advanced, SEO has changed. We’re entering a new era of search — … Read more
Managed WordPress web host WP Engine announced that they are acquiring NitroPack, a leading SaaS website performance optimization solution. The acquisition of of NitroPack by WP Engine demonstrates their continued focus on improving site performance for clients. NitroPack NitroPack is a relatively pricey but well regarded site performance solution that has for years been known … Read more
Of surveyed consumers, 56% have made a purchase from a company after reading their blog, and 10% of marketers who use blogging say it generates the biggest return on investment. If you’re writing a blog for a business, those stats make blog SEO a pretty big deal. Whenever I approach a post, I keep … Read more
