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WordPress.org, the backbone of the open-source web ecosystem, has announced a temporary suspension of several key services due to ongoing legal disputes and volunteer fatigue. Matt Mullenweg, CEO of Automattic and steward of WordPress.org, shared the news on December 20, stating that new account registrations, plugin submissions, and theme directory updates will be paused indefinitely.
What’s driving the shutdown?
Mullenweg cited the mounting strain from a legal battle with WP Engine as a major reason for the suspension. As per a recent court ruling, Mullenweg is to maintain WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org despite the service suspension. The dispute has drained resources and time, which Mullenweg says could have been better spent on improving WordPress.
“Much of the time I would spend making WordPress better is being taken up defending against WP Engine’s legal attacks,” he wrote in a public statement.
Adding to the mix is the need to give volunteers a much-needed break. While some services like forums and localization tools remain operational, the decision has sparked concerns about the broader implications for WordPress’s open-source community.
Impact on the community
The shutdown affects crucial functions of WordPress.org. This includes plugin and theme submissions, which are essential for developers and businesses relying on the platform. Joost de Valk, co-founder of Yoast, explained how this break could be disruptive, saying, “Recently, a change was made to require people to have a WordPress.org account to buy a ticket for a WordCamp. Because of that change, the new Holiday Break imposed by Matt causes issues.”
Michele Rosen, an IDC Research Manager, didn’t mince words about the potential damage. “It’s such a shame to watch a leader in the open-source community repeatedly sabotage his own project,” she said.
Ripple effects on WordPress’s future
This isn’t the first time WordPress.org has faced governance challenges. Critics argue that the centralized decision-making process, largely influenced by Mullenweg, has left the open-source project vulnerable to disruptions. Peter Zaitsev, founder of the open-source database vendor Percona, warned that prolonged suspension could “stifle the development of WordPress,” potentially inspiring the creation of alternative hubs for plugins and themes.
Despite the turmoil, WordPress.com, Automattic’s commercial hosting arm, remains unaffected. However, the ripple effects could still hurt enterprise users.
“The WordPress CMS is licensed under the GPL, so it is permanently available for free,” Rosen said. “In some cases, the wordpress.org URL is hardcoded into WordPress, which can make it difficult or impossible to update your themes and plugins if they haven’t been added to the directory.”
While Mullenweg hopes “to find the time, energy, and money” to resume in 2025, the uncertainty has left many questioning the platform’s resilience. The ongoing battle with WP Engine and the broader governance issues have sparked calls for a reevaluation of leadership and strategy. As one of the most widely used content management systems globally, WordPress’s ability to weather this storm will likely shape its future—and the trust of its millions of users worldwide.
