#227- WordPress 6.9 Development Cycle Revisions, Block Theme From WooCommerce

Issue #227 | July 8, 2025 | Reading time: 15 mins

Hello!

This week on The WP Week Newsletter, we cover the changes to the WordPress 6.9 development cycle, a new block theme set to be released by WooCommerce, DreamHost’s new limited-time offer, exciting new projects, and more.

Don’t forget to subscribe and listen to the podcast version of this newsletter, where you can hear more details and discussions about these topics and more.

See you next week!

Team WP-CONTENT.CO

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🗣️TALK OF THE TOWN

Revisions made to WordPress 6.9 Development Cycle

Matt Mullenweg hinted at the possibility of releasing WordPress 6.9 this year during the fireside chat at WordCamp Europe 2025. Now, the updated schedule shows that WordPress 6.9 will be the final major release of 2025, revising the earlier plan that had it slated for 2026. Michael Willman noted that the change was made recently to the development cycle post and informed the community about it.

Earlier this year, WordPress.org shifted to one major release per year, breaking away from the usual pattern.

📰 WORDPRESS & AROUND

All the updates around WordPress and its closely related technologies

Proposal: Introduce Maintenance Mode For Components

Jonathan Desrosiers has proposed a structured “Maintenance Mode” status for outdated or low-priority WordPress Core components. The goal is to set clearer expectations around support and development for legacy features that are no longer actively maintained but still require security and bug fixes.

What’s new in Gutenberg 21.1: The latest version brings enhancements to the social links block where developers can add new icons, updates to setting panels for several blocks, and various other enhancements and bug fixes.
WooCommerce is preparing to launch its first official block theme: Designed for a fast, modern, and fully block-based store experience and built for developers and merchants, it enhances key blocks like Product Gallery, Add to Cart, and Product Image with better accessibility, extensibility, and styling.
WooCommerce 10.0 release is delayed: The release of WooCommerce 10.0, originally scheduled for July 7, 2025, has been postponed to July 8, 2025 (tentative date), due to a fatal error caused by strict type checks in callback functions.
Cart and checkout block container query support in WooCommerce 10.0: WooCommerce 10.0 introduces CSS container query support for Cart and Checkout blocks, allowing developers to style components. This improves performance, reduces layout shifts, and modernizes styling. Legacy classes still exist for compatibility, but developers are encouraged to update their themes and plugins for consistency.
A year of accessibility improvements in WooCommerce core: In preparation for the European Accessibility Act, WooCommerce has implemented over 140 accessibility improvements across its core plugin, advancing toward WCAG 2.2 AA (and some AAA) standards. Key updates include better screen reader support, keyboard navigation, color contrast, form labeling, and live status messaging.
Fake spam plugin uses victim’s domain name to evade detection: The Sucuri team uncovered a sophisticated SEO spam plugin designed to evade detection by disguising itself using the victim’s domain name. The fake plugin appears legitimate, blends in with existing plugins, and only activates under specific conditions, such as visits from search engine bots.
600,000 WordPress sites affected by arbitrary file deletion vulnerability in Forminator WordPress plugin: This vulnerability allows unauthenticated attackers to include any file path within a form submission, causing the specified file to be deleted once the submission is removed. If exploited, it could result in the deletion of crucial files like wp-config.php, potentially enabling remote code execution. All users are advised to update to the latest version immediately.
Tumblr’s move to WordPress and fediverse integration is ‘on hold’: Automattic has put its plan to migrate Tumblr’s backend to WordPress on hold, according to CEO Matt Mullenweg. Originally intended to streamline operations and support features like fediverse integration via ActivityPub, the project is now paused to focus on more user-visible improvements.
DeepSeek app faces ban in Germany for illegal transfer of user data: German data protection official Meike Kamp has filed a formal request that Apple and Google remove the DeepSeek app from their respective app stores for the illegal transfer of users’ personal data to China, in violation of European Union law.
Cloudflare sparks SEO debate with new AI crawler payment system: Cloudflare’s new pay-per-crawl feature blocks AI crawlers and allows publishers to charge for access, sparking debate in the SEO industry over content visibility and monetization.
Google faces EU antitrust complaint over AI Overviews: A coalition of independent publishers filed a formal antitrust complaint with the European Commission against Google, accusing the tech giant of using its AI-generated summaries, known as AI Overviews, to siphon traffic and revenue from news outlets across Europe.

👥 COMMUNITY NEWS

Updates and News from the WordPress Community

DreamHost introduces complimentary human-powered artisanal website builds

DreamHost is offering a 100% free, professionally designed 4-page WordPress website when you sign up for a year of web hosting. The site is mobile-friendly, SEO-ready, and built with your content, logo, and style, including pages like Home, About, Services, and Contact. It’s a limited-time offer, so hurry up.

Oliver Sild criticizes Wordfence for undermining Patchstack’s VDP channels: Oliver Sild, CEO of Patchstack, criticized Wordfence for ignoring the existing Vulnerability Disclosure Programs (VDPs) that plugin developers have set up with Patchstack. He pointed out that Wordfence is now asking those same developers to join its own platform to access vulnerability details essentially asking them to change their VDPs.
InfluenceWP giveaway campaigns are now available for partners: InfluenceWP can now run giveaway campaigns as a part of the partner membership. This saves time and money by eliminating the need to purchase giveaway tools, set up and manage campaigns, or handle marketing. There are no limits, and if multiple giveaways are queued, they’ll be rotated accordingly.
Announcing the winners of the 2025 Share Your Pride Photo Drive: Danielle Zarcaro secured both first and third place, while second place went to cooperjoslin25.
Site Sleep & Wake Up feature introduced by FlyWP: The feature lets you pause (“sleep”) a WordPress site on demand, reducing resource usage and cost.
WooCommerce powers over 4.6 million online stores worldwide: Automattic shared the update on X, a big milestone that shows just how many businesses are relying on WooCommerce to run their shops.
Bricks integration for Gato AI Translations for Polylang is now available: The latest release allows users to translate Bricks pages and templates, property by property within all the elements.
InstaWP announces new pricing structure: InstaWP has switched to a pay-as-you-go structure from fixed plans and each site now has its own plan.
Equalize Digital Accessibility Checker crosses 6,000+ installs: Amber Hinds shared on X about this exciting milestone.
Another major milestone achieved by wpDataTables: The plugin has officially hit 2 million downloads milestone.
New milestone for Booking for Appointments and Events Calendar: The plugin has reached 1 million downloads on the plugin repository.
WPBeginner 16-year milestone giveaway: To celebrate this occasion, the team is giving away premium plugin licenses worth over $20,000 to 87 lucky winners.
Nasim Miah receives the Yoast Care fund for his contribution to the WordPress community: Nasim Miah, a member of the WordPress Core Team, is the latest recipient of the Yoast Care fund.

🚀 NEW PROJECTS

Make WordPress Fast course by Remkus de Vries: A comprehensive 25-module course designed for WordPress professionals, developers, and agencies who want to build lightning-fast, performance-first WordPress sites.
Language Attribute for Container Blocks plugin: The plugin developed by Marco Almeida aims to provide a way to ensure that any language change in the content of a page is indicated to assistive technologies at the container block level, helping a website comply with WCAG guidelines.
Introducing Podcaster Plus plugin: Nathan Wrigley and Dan Maby have announced the Podcaster Plus plugin, and interested folks can sign up for the beta list.
Introducing Ahmes theme: A lightweight WordPress full-site-editing theme for blog created by Sumit Singh.

🔖 INTERESTING READS & PODCASTS

More posts and podcasts from the WordPress Community you don’t want to miss

WordCamp Asia 2026 – A journey begins!: Aditya Kane shares his excitement as WordCamp Asia 2026 kicks off with its first town hall, uniting 70+ organizers from across the globe. From Aditya Kane.
Why Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg went to war over WordPress: Matt Mullenweg discusses WP Engine lawsuit, Automattic turning 20, and what’s next for the web. From The Verge.
In conversation with Matt Graham: Matt Graham, a longtime WordPress professional from Ontario, shared insights on his career, passions, and personal life. He spoke about his journey as a web developer and educator, teaching JavaScript, PHP, and more at his local college. From Seriously, Bud?
Jennifer Schumacher on learning from agency mistakes: Jennifer Schumacher shares key lessons from her 15+ years in WordPress and agency life. She reflects on common agency mistakes like poor support processes, chaotic design handoffs, and over-servicing clients. From WP Tavern Jukebox.
Understanding your value as a WordPress Freelancer: Eric Karkovack reflects on the shifting landscape of WordPress freelancing amid AI disruption, community changes, and evolving client needs. He emphasizes that strong client relationships, hands-on experience, and real-world expertise remain valuable in a world of site builders and automation. From The WP Minute.
Aaron Jorbion’s May and June in WordPress: In May and June, Aaron Jorbin focused on organizing the WordPress 6.8.2 maintenance release by assembling the release squad and coordinating with volunteers. Across the two months, Aaron contributed to 131 tickets, made 4 core commits, received 10 props, and was supported by 20 sponsors.
Pascal Birchler’s experience co-organizing WordCamp Europe 2025: Pascal reflects on his experience co-organizing WordCamp Europe 2025, held in Basel, Switzerland. As lead of the speakers team, he helped curate a diverse lineup of talks, navigated challenges with team transitions, and emphasized better documentation for future organizers.
One year of Ollie Pro: leading the block theme revolution: Ollie Pro just completed its first year, and it gained 500+ paid subscribers and 5,000+ active users of the free Ollie theme. The team launched major updates like Ollie Pro 2.0 with a setup wizard and starter sites, making it easier and faster to build full-site editing–powered websites. From Ollie.
The journey to WordPress: A legacy of love and code: Anna M. reflects on her eight-year journey at Automattic, starting with an unexpected job opportunity that came during her travels. She joined as a Happiness Engineer in 2017 and later became a Code Wrangler, contributing to WordPress and other Automattic products. From Anna.
Job Thomas’s 10 years at Automattic: Job Thomas reflects on reaching 10 years at Automattic, a journey that began shortly after WooThemes was acquired in 2015. He highlighted how meaningful benefits like parental leave and sabbaticals, along with a strong culture of autonomy, have shaped both their work and personal life.
WordPress and the AI-powered web: Why open source still wins: Casey Burridge explores how WordPress fits into the rapidly evolving, AI-powered web. While closed platforms like Wix and Webflow push sleek AI tools, WordPress’s open-source foundation gives it a long-term edge in flexibility and innovation. From GravityKit.

🛠 GUIDE ZONE – HOWTO’S and MORE

Handpicked fresh guides from WordPress circle

Splitting a WordPress multisite: Migrating a subsite to its own single installation: From Delicious Brains
How to fix the ‘cookies are blocked’ error (and other common WordPress cookie errors): From Kinsta
WooCommerce 10 shareable checkout URLs: Complete guide with examples: From Remi Corson

📆 SAVE THE DATES

Do not miss a WordPress event ever again

WPCampus 2025 on July 23–25, 2025: The call for proposals is now open.
WordCamp US on August 26-29, 2025: The call for organizers and sponsor applications is now open.
LoopConf 2025 on September 25: The registration is now open.
SomeConf 2025: The event is in the early planning stages. The call for sponsors and speakers is now live.
WordCamp Canada on October 16-17 2025: The call for sponsors is now open.
WordCamp Asia 2026: It is tentatively planned for early February 2026 and the call for organizers is now open.
WordCamp Europe 2026 on June 4-6: The call for organizers is now open.

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60% off for the lifetime plan for the Modern Cart for WooCommerce plugin.