WP Engine filed an amended complaint alleging Automattic planned to demand royalty fees from 10 hosting competitors for WordPress trademark use, not just WP Engine. The filing claims Matt Mullenweg attempted to pressure Stripe into canceling WP Engine's contract and that the 8% royalty rate was arbitrarily based on what WP Engine "could afford to pay" rather than standard licensing practices. The complaint includes aggressive internal communications from Automattic threatening to "steal customers" and wage "nuclear war" against WP Engine. Newfold (parent of Bluehost and HostGator) is reportedly already paying Automattic for trademark use.
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