WordPress.com rolls out URL shortener, WP.me

August 17, 2009 | Leave a Comment

WP.me URL shortener

WordPress.com, whose frontpage just underwent a makeover, has finally rolled out its own URL shortening service, WP.me, to benefit its microblogging crowd. The feature is built right into the post editor: just click on the Shorten button and you can grab a short link 70% smaller than your permalink.

Another great advantage of having this built right into WordPress.com is its rel=shortlink code integrated automatically into the header. Automattic is also proud to say that WP.me will remain spam free, since they are constantly keeping tabs on and removing spam on WordPress.com.

That last feature will probably be the reason WP.me won’t be applicable to self-hosted WordPress sites, but I’m sure lots of WordPress.org would love to have access to the service.

Now that WordPress.com has a shortening service of its own, however, it erases the possibility of WP.com filling that need. So what will it be used for? Matt Mullenweg says it’s still a secret!