In reply to Justin Tadlock.

Part of the appeal of WordPress is the community supporting it and a general sense of fair play. I think allowing products to be called “free” when they require an accompanying purchase lessens that appeal by turning the plug-in library into a frustrating mine field of deceptively labeled “free,” but surprise not really free.

Most WordPress plug-ins work without requiring a tied purchase. Many also provide additional functions in clearly described “pro” versions that are sold separately and not via the WordPress plug-in library. That is fair. ACF Blocks won’t work without payment. How can that be called “free”?

I don’t see that ACF Blocks is in any logical sense “free.” The use of ACF Blocks is “tied” to the purchase of another product, ACF Pro. Tying arrangements are illegal under both the Sherman Antitrust and Clayton Acts. While one might quibble whether or not ACF Blocks crosses a legal line, I don’t think it is good for WordPress to approach such a line. It certainly offends my sense of fair play. Will we let greed kill the goose that lays the golden eggs?