An archive of the Wix–WordPress code dispute reported in 2016. Image by Tasha Tuvango (via Shutterstock).

Code editor and connected blocks illustrating collaborative web development.
Concept illustration: code editor and connected blocks illustrating collaborative web development.

The Wix and WordPress Code Dispute: 2016 Archive

A while back, we at Dreamkatcha web design published an opinion article about website builders. This separate archive concerns a public disagreement between WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg and Wix in October 2016. It should be read in that historical context, rather than as an assessment of either platform today. Earlier wording about Wix sites relying on Flash has been removed because it does not describe the current platform. The issue discussed here was the use and licensing of code in a mobile application.

The disagreement centred on how open-source editor code had been incorporated into Wix’s mobile app, and what should be released in return.

In his October 2016 account, Mullenweg alleged that Wix had reused WordPress mobile-editor code without meeting the associated licence requirements. He pointed to similarities in the editor and its source history. These were his allegations; Wix publicly disputed his characterisation of its conduct.

The exchange is useful historical context for anyone following open-source software. It also illustrates why a disagreement between developers should be reported with clear attribution, links to the original statements and a distinction between the parties’ arguments and an established finding.

Mullenweg argued that releasing changes to the editor library was insufficient and that the app containing it should also be released under the GPL. His complaint concerned the relationship between the reused component and the distributed application. This article reports that position rather than independently deciding the licensing dispute. The same conclusion should not automatically be applied to unrelated software, photographs or other creative works.

Mullenweg urged Wix to put their revised source code on Github, a great place for finding useful scripts.  He said to Wix’s founder, “If you’re going to join the open source community, play by the open source rules.”

Avishai Abrahami, Wix’s founder and CEO at the time, responded in an open letter published by Wix. He rejected the suggestion that the company took from open source without contributing, pointing to 224 public GitHub projects. He acknowledged use of an open-source library for part of the application and said the changes had been shared. His response also distinguished that component from the wider application developed by Wix.

The two statements presented different views of what sharing the code required. Readers interested in the dispute can compare the original accounts directly rather than relying on a summary alone.

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Dreamkatcha, 03 November 2016.