The New York Times is trying to shut down a popular Connections puzzle creator

The New York Times wants to shut down a copy of its popular Connections word game. The publication sent a cease and desist letter to the owner of a website that lets you make your own Connections games. The site also has a full archive of all of the NYT’s past Connections puzzles, which the NYT keeps behind a paywall.

The Connections creator website is built and run by Anthony Salazar, a freelance web developer who runs the creative studio Swellgarfo. Earlier this month, striking New York Times tech workers used Salazar’s Connections tool to make their own strike-themed puzzle. Salazar previously told me that he built the archive using the NYT’s publicly available API.

In the letter, which Salazar shared with The Verge, the NYT’s counsel alleges that the website “unlawfully copies and reproduces” Connections, which constitutes “trademark and copyright infringement in violation of The Times’s intellectual property rights.” The letter also says that the NYT has three trademark applications pending in connection with Connections.

Salazar has been given three business days to take down the site. If that doesn’t happen, the NYT’s counsel says it’s “prepared to take further action if necessary to protect its valuable intellectual property rights,” such as filing a lawsuit.

Salazar tells The Verge that he will “definitely take down the archive.” But he wants to keep the creator open, saying that it’s used by schools globally. “It’s not like I am getting paid for it or competing with their users (of which I am one),” Salazar says. He’s not sure about the specific timeline for when things might happen, though.

The NYT says people should just play Connections on its website. “Mr. Salazar’s website violates the intellectual property rights of The New York Times,” spokesperson Jordan Cohen says in a statement to The Verge. “Anyone looking to play the original Connections game can do so for free on The Times’s own platforms. Those looking to solve puzzles from the Connections archive can do so by subscribing to New York Times Games.”

The NYT targeted Wordle clones with legal takedowns earlier this year. The publication has also warned AI search engine Perplexity to stop using its content and is suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement.