That “underdog” you’re talking about is owned by the 11th largest private equity firm in the world, and they really don’t contribute much to the free software project Matt runs which their entire business is built on.
Matt is certainly screwing up with his handling of the dispute, and it’s sad to see because i think his commitment to free software ideals has generally been a benefit to society over the last two decades.
From where I’m sitting (i’ve spent at least a couple hours reading about the dispute over the last few months) he’s actually not wrong about the trademark thing. And he’s also not wrong about pineapple on pizza 😂 … but putting either on the login page is not a good look. 😢
I think WP Engine has a meritful claim of extortion, with Matt giving them a two-day ultimatum out of the blue that demanded them agree to hand over 8% of revenue. I also think Matt is wrong about the trademark thing and that WP Engine’s use should fall under nominative fair use. However, I agree that “underdog” is quite the mischaracterization; despite WordPress.com’s extreme and widespread usage, they’re probably close to 2nd-most used.
