Mullenweg threatens corporate takeover of WP Engine

Re:Mullenweg threatens corporate takeover of WP Engine by i_am_jl on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @08:41PM (#41716043)

>Nominative use allows companies to refer to things by their name. It isn't obvious that "Wordpress Hosting" or "Wordpress plugin" is a violation or causes consumer confusion. Does Matt wish for all companies in the ecosystem to stop referring to their products as Wordpress Themes, Wordpress Plugins and Wordpress hosts?

I think Matt's position is that WP Engine is not Wordpress, so it's not appropriate to call their offerings Wordpress-anything.

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Re:Mullenweg threatens corporate takeover of WP Engine by graeme on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @11:05PM (#41716792)

That would be a truth in advertising issue if anything, not a trademark issue.

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Re:Mullenweg threatens corporate takeover of WP Engine by i_am_jl on Wednesday October 02, 2024 @09:43PM (#41726536)

Why do you think it's not both?

>The abbreviation “WP” is not covered by the WordPress trademarks, but please don’t use it in a way that confuses people. For example, many people think WP Engine is “WordPress Engine” and officially associated with WordPress, which it’s not. They have never once even donated to the WordPress Foundation, despite making billions of revenue on top of WordPress.

Referential use doesn't allow someone to use marks to imply an association or endorsement, and I think it's clear what they're calling out in the trademark policy changes.

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