ActivityPub plugin now owned by WordPress: Fediverse users can follow your WP blog posts from Mastodon and other Fediverse social networks

ActivityPub

The plugin has existed for a while, but has now been acquired by WordPress’ parent company Automattic.

Normally blog posting pushes the post out to various social networks, meaning you must have account profiles setup on each network, which your followers/customers/fans then follow on each network to see and respond to the posts.

Because the Fediverse (and ActivityPub) is decentralised, it does not have to work like Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr and other centralised networks. There is is actually no need to create a profile anywhere on the Fediverse to get your WordPerfect blog posts followed by any Fediverse user, as this plugin creates a node of its own on your WordPress blog. This will be of interest especially to corporate marketing and branding teams.

This has two distinct advantages for any organisation:
1. Your WordPress domain name is the visible Fediverse “profile” that is subscribed to and followed. Your organisation can use this means to have a brand presence on the Fediverse without having to create their own Mastodon or other Fediverse server node. This makes it really easy and existing WordPress skills are all that is required.
2. Your organisation retains control, and continuity, of your presence in the Fediverse. No admin can remove your account from existing on their server (although individual node admins may block your posts from appearing on their nodes) and you are immune from an instance closing down, and then having to change your Fediverse address.

The advantages above are just as relevant for individuals, but organisations especially will value it, retaining their brand identity and reaching all across the Fediverse.

Organisational literature and PR will then just promote following the address created with this plugin, and any replies, reactions or comments from the Fediverse to these posts, will appear as WordPress comments linked to the post. Existing users on Mastodon, Pleroma, Friendica, Hubzilla, PixelFed, SocialHome, Misskey, and many more social networks will be able to interact with this Fediverse profile.

See https://wordpress.com/blog/2023/03/17/making-the-social-web-a-better-place-activitypub-for-wordpress-joins-the-automattic-family/