A few days ago, Matt Mullenweg and Automattic announced the new WordPress Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to perpetuating WordPress and other open-source GPL projects.

In their own words:

The point of the foundation is to ensure free access, in perpetuity, to the projects we support. People and businesses may come and go, so it is important to ensure that the source code for these projects will survive beyond the current contributor base, that we may create a stable platform for web publishing for generations to come. As part of this mission, the Foundation will be responsible for protecting the WordPress, WordCamp, and related trademarks. A 501(c)3 non-profit organization, the WordPress Foundation will also pursue a charter to educate the public about WordPress and related open source software.

I think this is a really great endeavour, especially with regards to things like WordCamp which are starting to be taken advantage of by commercial organizations. I also think that as a non-profit they will attract many businesses that can donate to the WordPress Foundation while receiving a tax credit, which is really a win-win for both parties. I also applaud WordCamp New York for donating their budget surplus, over $28,000, to the WordPress Foundation.

For more information on the foundation, head on over to the WordPress Foundation website and browse around.