WordPress.com
Encyclopedia
WordPress.com is a weblog hosting
provider owned by Automattic
which opened to beta testers on August 8, 2005 and opened to the public on November 21, 2005. It is powered by the open source WordPress software. It is financially supported via paid upgrades, "VIP" services and advertising.
The site was initially launched as an invitation-only service, although at one stage, accounts were also available to users of the Flock
web browser. There are 24 million individual blogs with the service as of .
Registration is not required to read or comment on weblogs hosted on the site, except if chosen by the blog owner. Registration is required to own or post in a weblog. All the basic and original features of the site are free-to-use. However, some features (such as a CSS
editor, domain mapping
, and storage upgrades) are available as paid options.
In September 2010, it was announced that Windows Live Spaces
, Microsoft
's blogging service, would be closing, and that Microsoft would instead be partnering with WordPress.com for blogging services.
However, banner ads run by Google have shown up frequently when the comments page is loaded.
Ads can be removed from a blog if a yearly fee is paid.
, a Turkish
creationist
, was able to get a Turkish court to block Internet access to WordPress.com by all of Turkey. His lawyers argued that blogs on WordPress.com contained libelous material on Oktar and his colleagues which WordPress.com staff was unwilling to remove. WordPress.com has been blocked in China
and threatened to be blocked in Brazil
because the staff was unwilling to censor blogs. Matt Mullenweg
said, “WordPress.com supports free speech and doesn’t shut people down for 'uncomfortable thoughts and ideas', in fact we’re blocked in several countries because of that."
Web hosting service
A web hosting service is a type of Internet hosting service that allows individuals and organizations to make their own website accessible via the World Wide Web. Web hosts are companies that provide space on a server they own or lease for use by their clients as well as providing Internet...
provider owned by Automattic
Automattic
Automattic, Inc. is a web development corporation founded in August 2005.It is most notable for WordPress.com , as well as its contributions to WordPress .-Projects:Other projects include:...
which opened to beta testers on August 8, 2005 and opened to the public on November 21, 2005. It is powered by the open source WordPress software. It is financially supported via paid upgrades, "VIP" services and advertising.
The site was initially launched as an invitation-only service, although at one stage, accounts were also available to users of the Flock
Flock (web browser)
Flock was a web browser that specialized in providing social networking and Web 2.0 facilities built into its user interface.Earlier versions of Flock used the Gecko HTML rendering engine by Mozilla....
web browser. There are 24 million individual blogs with the service as of .
Registration is not required to read or comment on weblogs hosted on the site, except if chosen by the blog owner. Registration is required to own or post in a weblog. All the basic and original features of the site are free-to-use. However, some features (such as a CSS
Cascading Style Sheets
Cascading Style Sheets is a style sheet language used to describe the presentation semantics of a document written in a markup language...
editor, domain mapping
Domain name
A domain name is an identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority, or control in the Internet. Domain names are formed by the rules and procedures of the Domain Name System ....
, and storage upgrades) are available as paid options.
In September 2010, it was announced that Windows Live Spaces
Windows Live Spaces
Windows Live Spaces was Microsoft's blogging and social networking platform. The site was originally released in early 2004 as MSN Spaces to compete with other social networking sites, and re-launched in 2006 as a part of a shifting of community services away from the MSN brand...
, Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's blogging service, would be closing, and that Microsoft would instead be partnering with WordPress.com for blogging services.
Advertising
Readers see ads on WordPress.com pages, though WordPress.com claims that it is rare. From The "Features You’ll Love" page: "Advertising. To support the service we may occasionally show Google text ads on your blog, however we do this very rarely."However, banner ads run by Google have shown up frequently when the comments page is loaded.
Ads can be removed from a blog if a yearly fee is paid.
Controversies
In August 2007 Adnan OktarAdnan Oktar
Adnan Oktar , also known as Harun Yahya, is an author and Islamic creationist. In 2007, he sent thousands of unsolicited copies of the Atlas of Creation advocating Islamic creationism to American scientists, members of Congress, and science museums...
, a Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
creationist
Creationism
Creationism is the religious beliefthat humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe are the creation of a supernatural being, most often referring to the Abrahamic god. As science developed from the 18th century onwards, various views developed which aimed to reconcile science with the Genesis...
, was able to get a Turkish court to block Internet access to WordPress.com by all of Turkey. His lawyers argued that blogs on WordPress.com contained libelous material on Oktar and his colleagues which WordPress.com staff was unwilling to remove. WordPress.com has been blocked in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and threatened to be blocked in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
because the staff was unwilling to censor blogs. Matt Mullenweg
Matt Mullenweg
Matthew Charles Mullenweg is an online social media entrepreneur, web developer and musician living in San Francisco, California. He is best known for his development of the free and open source web software, WordPress...
said, “WordPress.com supports free speech and doesn’t shut people down for 'uncomfortable thoughts and ideas', in fact we’re blocked in several countries because of that."