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The Platform Tithe: WordPress, WP Engine, and Digital Platform Power

By Ron Whitman
October 30, 2024

“This is one of the many reasons they are a cancer to WordPress.”

With those words, Matt Mullenweg didn’t just criticize a business partner – he revealed a pattern as old as commerce itself, now playing out in open source clothing. Within days, WordPress.org would ban WP Engine from accessing its resources, demonstrating that even in the world of free software, someone always eventually presents a bill.

The Price of Platform Power

For the technical leaders caught in this crisis, the numbers tell a familiar story. WordPress powers 43.5% of all websites as of October 2024[1], making this less a technical dispute and more a lesson in digital feudalism. WP Engine serves over 1.5 million customers across 150 countries[2], each now discovering that “platform independence” ranks right up there with “temporary fix” in the pantheon of tech industry oxymorons.

By October 2, 2024, the conflict had escalated to federal court [3], where WP Engine alleged trademark infringement and abuse of power – because nothing says “open source community” quite like intellectual property litigation. Behind the legal filings and community outrage lies a pattern that every business leader should recognize: successful platforms inevitably evolve from nurturing partnerships to demanding tribute. The mechanisms change – from gentle suggestion to firm insistence to “nice platform you’ve built there, shame if anything happened to it” – but the power dynamic remains constant.

When Open Source Meets Commerce

This pattern of platform control emerges first in open source communities, where the tension between community benefit and commercial interest creates natural fault lines. Companies build successful businesses around open source projects, only to discover that “free as in freedom” often comes with a surprisingly detailed terms and conditions page.

What begins as voluntary contribution often transforms into “voluntary” contribution – air quotes very much intended. The WordPress ecosystem exemplifies this evolution perfectly. Early commercial players were celebrated for making the platform more accessible, right up until they became successful enough to require correction. Today, we measure a company’s legitimacy not just by their commercial success, but by their contributions back to the platform – a bit like a digital tithe where the collection plate gets larger with each passing quarter.

The Pattern Spreads

These dynamics reach far beyond open source into every corner of the digital economy. Consider Salesforce’s evolution: early success built on partner innovations, followed by systematic absorption of the most successful partner solutions into the core platform. It’s less a platform ecosystem and more a technological food chain, where today’s innovative partner feature is tomorrow’s “native functionality we’re excited to announce.”

Success on the platform paradoxically increases vulnerability to platform control – a peculiar form of digital natural selection where the fittest are the first to be consumed. Witness how Apple’s App Store transformed from a revolutionary distribution channel into a carefully controlled marketplace where developers learn that “review process” is actually code for “negotiating with the house.”

WP Engine pays Tribute to WordPress.org
Image Credits: Ron Whitman + Adobe Generative AI

The Human Cost

Behind these platform politics are real teams facing impossible choices. When WordPress.org blocked WP Engine’s access in September 2024[4], DevOps teams worked around the clock to maintain system stability, discovering that “platform independence” becomes a much more urgent priority after you’ve lost it.

Product managers rewrote roadmaps as platform features they depended on became political battlegrounds, learning that “strategic alignment” is really just a polite term for “doing what we’re told.” Customer success teams fielded anxious calls from clients wondering if their digital infrastructure was at risk, perfecting the art of saying “everything is fine” in increasingly creative ways.

Partners to Threats

The evolution of the WordPress-WP Engine relationship provides a masterclass in this progression – a sort of speed-dating version of the classic platform-partner romance, speedrunning from courtship to conflict in record time. From Mullenweg’s appearance at WP Engine’s DE{CODE} conference in March 2023[5] to the September 2024 platform ban, their story traces the familiar arc from “valued partner” to “existential threat” – a transformation that occurs, coincidentally, right around the time the partner’s success becomes noticeable.

This pattern echoes throughout business history with the predictability of a software update breaking your favorite feature. Movie theaters once operated independently, until film studios began suggesting that perhaps access to content should come with a few more… conditions. Franchise businesses followed a similar path – McDonald’s franchisees built an empire with their capital and sweat equity, only to discover that “standardizing operations” is corporate-speak for “increasing the tribute.”

Building Platform Independence

Smart leaders recognize this pattern early and build their independence methodically – not because they’re paranoid, but because they’ve been paying attention. They understand that platform relationships require a careful balance, much like performing a high-wire act where the platform occasionally shakes the wire to test your commitment.

Technical independence isn’t built in crisis – despite what every emergency refactoring meeting might suggest. Successful teams maintain portable solutions even when platform lock-in offers short-term benefits, treating platform dependencies like those “temporary” patches that somehow survive three system migrations.

The most successful platform partners operate like skilled diplomats in a digital cold war. They maintain friendly relations while quietly building their escape routes. Their playbook is remarkably consistent:

First, they treat platform promises like end-user license agreements – technically binding but subject to change without notice. Every platform feature adoption comes with a contingency plan, every integration with a backup strategy. It’s not paranoia if the platform really is out to absorb you.

Second, they build customer relationships that transcend platform boundaries. When Salesforce partners succeed, it’s rarely because they built a better AppExchange integration. It’s because they solved customer problems in ways that would survive a platform apocalypse.

Finally, they master the art of platform contribution theater – doing just enough to maintain good standing while keeping their crown jewels safely independent. Think of it as digital statecraft: maintaining the appearance of perfect alignment while quietly building your own power base.

The truly sophisticated players turn platform risk into customer benefit. They present their independence as a feature, not a bug. “Yes, we integrate perfectly with the platform,” they tell customers, “but we also ensure your business won’t collapse if platform politics suddenly turn… interesting.”

The Pattern Continues

These principles transcend any single platform dispute. Whether you’re building on open source foundations, leveraging commercial platforms, or participating in traditional business ecosystems, the pattern remains consistent. Successful platforms will always seek greater control over their partners, much like gravity always seeks to remind skydivers about the importance of planning ahead.

The question isn’t whether successful platforms will demand their tithe – history shows us they always do, with the predictability of a Monday morning deployment going wrong. The question is whether you’ll be ready when that demand comes. The wise prepare accordingly. The rest prepare emergency board presentations.


Ron Whitman is founder of Global Gum and a veteran technology consultant with over two decades of experience navigating platform relationships. He writes about the human patterns behind technology and business.

This article was written with assistance from artificial intelligence tools, following Global Gum’s editorial standards and fact-checking processes.

Sources

[1] WordPress Market Share Statistics 2024
https://www.wpzoom.com/blog/wordpress-statistics/

[2] WP Engine Five for the Future Pledge
https://wordpress.org/five-for-the-future/pledge/wp-engine/

[3] WP Engine v. Automattic Inc. et al Court Filing
https://www.pacermonitor.com/public/case/55306021/WPEngine%2C_Inc_v_Automattic_Inc_et_al

[4] WordPress.org Ban Coverage
https://oakharborwebdesigns.com/blog/wordpress-bans-wp-engine/

[5] Matt Mullenweg at WP Engine DE{CODE} 2023
https://wpengine.com/blog/decode-special-guests-matt-mullenweg-matias-ventura/

[6] Automattic Company Profile
https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51586-57

[7] The Verge: WordPress vs WP Engine Lawsuit Coverage
https://www.theverge.com/2024/10/3/24261016/wordpress-wp-engine-lawsuit-automattic-matt-mullenweg