WordPress Shake-Up: Linux Foundation Unveils FAIR Package Manager Amidst Centralization Row

After months of mounting tension within the WordPress community—marked by lawsuits and accusations of authoritarian control—the Linux Foundation has unveiled a new method for distributing WordPress updates and plugins: the FAIR Package Manager. This system is designed to eliminate reliance on centralized sources and pledges to restore greater autonomy to participants within the ecosystem.

The initiative emerged in response to a prolonged conflict between WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg, his company Automattic, and rival hosting provider WP Engine. While WordPress is technically an open-source software platform for website creation and hosting, the trademark “WordPress” is owned by the WordPress Foundation, a nonprofit established by Mullenweg. This ownership grants him legal authority over how the brand is used.

In 2024, Mullenweg asserted that WP Engine was required to obtain a license to use the WordPress trademark. After WP Engine refused, he publicly criticized the company for its alleged insufficient contributions to the open-source project and subsequently restricted its access to WordPress software updates. The dispute escalated into legal proceedings, and several Automattic employees who voiced concern over leadership decisions were reportedly dismissed.

These actions provoked outrage across the community, with several respected contributors removed from the project. A primary concern centered on the excessive concentration of power over WordPress’s critical infrastructure.

The FAIR Package Manager, introduced by the Linux Foundation, aims to address these risks. It offers a decentralized alternative to the centralized WordPress.org infrastructure, enabling the distribution of plugins, themes, and even core updates without relying on a single governing body. According to its project repository, FAIR operates as a standard WordPress plugin and is positioned to replace centralized services with a more resilient federated framework.

Developers emphasize that FAIR Package Manager integrates security into the software supply chain itself, mitigates risks of browser data leakage to third parties, and ensures compliance with the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Jim Zemlin, Executive Director of the Linux Foundation, stated that the initiative is intended to stabilize and evolve the WordPress ecosystem through neutral governance and by fostering broader participation from businesses and the open-source community.

One of the project’s early supporters is Karim Marucchi, CEO of Crowd Favorite, whose WordPress.org account was suspended during the conflict. He praised the project’s alignment with the Linux Foundation, noting that such backing ensures transparency, neutrality, and increased institutional trust in the new approach.

FAIR Package Manager also received endorsement from Josh Koenig, co-founder of Pantheon, a company focused on enterprise-grade websites. In his view, the project reduces systemic risks to IT infrastructure and enhances the reliability of software supply chain management—mirroring the evolution seen within the Linux ecosystem.

As of now, Automattic has not issued an official response to the launch of the FAIR Package Manager.