Contribute and be proud of defending Software Freedom from monopolist control! We are intervening in the Apple vs. EC case: Find out more.

Aktivitäten

Seit ihrer Gründung im Jahr 2001 arbeitet die FSFE jeden Tag daran, Freie Software in Europa und darüber hinaus zu fördern. Mit unseren konkreten Aktivitäten, basierend auf den drei Säulen unserer Arbeit, konzentrieren wir uns auf den Schutz und die Erweiterung der Nutzerrechte. Einige unserer Aktionen laufen über viele Jahre, manche zielen auf kurzfristige Entwicklungen, aber alle sind Teil unserer Mission: Nutzer im selbstbestimmten Umgang mit Technik zu unterstüzten.

Ein weiterer großer Teil unserer Arbeit besteht aus kontinuierlichem Engagement und Hintergrundarbeit. Wir sind pro Jahr auf dutzenden Konferenzen präsent, unterstützen und pflegen eine exzellente Community und versorgen diese mit hilfreichen Ressourcen. Darüber hinaus sind wir eine prominente Anlaufstelle für alle Fragen und Anfragen rund um Software-Freiheit und Nutzerrechte.

  • Public Money? Public Code!

    Why is software created using taxpayers' money not released as Free Software? We want legislation requiring that publicly financed software developed for the public sector be made publicly available under a Free and Open Source Software licence. If it is public money, it should be public code as well. Code paid by the people should be available to the people!

  • Book "Ada & Zangemann"

    The illustrated book "Ada & Zangemann - a tale of software, skateboards, and raspberry ice cream" by the FSFE, tells the story of the famous inventor Zangemann and the girl Ada, a curious tinkerer. Ada begins to experiment with hardware and software, and in the process realises how crucial it is for her and others to control technology.

  • Youth Hacking 4 Freedom

    ***** people, from all over Europe, compete in Youth Hacking 4 Freedom to win cash prizes by creating programs of their choice licensed as Free Software. The six winners will be invited to the Award ceremony weekend. Youth Hacking for Freedom inspires people to learn programming and to collaborate.

  • REUSE Software

    The FSFE is running a project to make licensing easy for humans and machines alike. It solves a fundamental issue that Free Software licensing has at the very source: what license is a file licensed under, and who owns the copyright? REUSE provides easy recommendations in three steps that help users, developers and legal professionals.

  • I Love Free Software

    We often underestimate the power of a simple Thank You. Free Software contributors do important work for our society and the "I Love Free Software Day" on 14 February is the perfect opportunity for you to express your special gratitude. Since 2010, we have celebrated this wonderful annual event with an ever-growing and diverse community. ♥ ♥ ♥

  • DMA: Apple Litigation

    The FSFE is intervening to safeguard Free Software in a key court case involving Apple and the European Commission. Apple is trying to avoid obligations derived from the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The FSFE seeks to hold Apple accountable under the DMA in a developer-friendly way.

  • Device Neutrality

    Although digital devices are ubiquitous today, the number of devices on which users cannot run Free Software is exponentially increasing. The consequence is an increased loss of control over users’ technology. Device Neutrality aims to enable end-users to bypass gatekeepers to have a non-discriminatory use of Free Software on their devices.

  • Digital Markets Act

    Device Neutrality is the policy concept to regulate monopoly over devices and re-establish end-user control over their digital equipment. The Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulates the economic activity of large digital platforms and introduces Device Neutrality in the EU legislation, fostering access to Free Sofware in Devices.

  • Router Freedom

    Although we should be free to choose the technical devices we use in our private lives, some European Internet Service Providers are dictating which device their customers have to use to connect to the Internet, or discriminating against owners of alternative devices. This undermines our basic freedom of choice.

  • Free Your Android

    Android is a mostly free operating system but unfortunately the drivers for most devices and most applications in the built-in store are not Free Software. This initiative helps you to regain control of your Android device and your data.

  • Next Generation Internet

    The FSFE is a partner organisation of NGI, a coalition of non-profit organisations from across Europe. Funded by the EC, it provides grants to work on new ideas and technologies that contribute to the establishment of the Next Generation Internet. The FSFE provides legal support for these projects.

  • Licence Questions

    The FSFE’s Licence Questions mailing list is our group of volunteers dedicated to provide help with Free Software licences and compliance. If you need advice on what Free Software licence you should use, or if you want to know more about what rights you have over a piece of Free Software, you can contact us.

  • The *****OM Initiative

    The FSFE is part of these European consortium to promote and raise awareness about the importance of Free Software, Open Data, and Open Hardware among academia, business, industry, and innovation supporting organizations. As a big part of our work, we are promoting the REUSE specification as an important element for licensing compliance.

  • Legal Network

    The Legal Network is a neutral, non-partisan, group of experts involved in Free Software legal issues with currently several hundreds of participants from different legal systems, academic backgrounds and affiliations. The aim of the Legal Network is to promote discussion and foster better knowledge of the legal constructs that back Free Software.

Weitere Aktivitäten

  • Fiduciary Programme

    The Fiduciary License Agreement (FLA) allows software projects to assign copyrights to a named fiduciary for its effective management. This allows developers to focus on development rather than spending time on legal administration. While the FSFE is no longer accepting new projects under the Fiduciary Programme, we continue to offer customisable versions of the FLA) for your use.

  • Upcycling AndroidAbgeschlossen

    Keep using your phone with Free Software. Upcycling Android explains the issue of software obsolescence in the Android world and helps people flashing their phones with Free Software operating systems.

  • 20 Years FSFEAbgeschlossen

    In 2021, the Free Software Foundation Europe turns 20. Throughout this time we have empowered users to use, study, share, and improve software. In 20 Years FSFE, we thank everyone who helped us along the way. Here you will find interviews discussing the FSFE progress as well as technological issues. You are welcome to celebrate with us!

  • Radio Lockdown Directive

    An EU regulation may make it impossible to install a custom piece of software on most radio devices like WiFi routers, smartphones, and embedded devices. It requires hardware manufacturers to implement a barrier that disallows users to install any software which has not been certified by them.

  • Electoral Activities

    What could be a better time to ask politicians about their stance on Free Software and Open Standards than the run-up to an election? We believe we can and should raise these issues in all elections, European, national, regional and local. Depending on the electoral system and culture, we use different strategies and tools.

  • Software Patents in Europe

    We are working towards a world where software does what software users want it to do. For this, software users must be able to participate in the development and distribution of the software. Software patents block this goal by adding legal and financial risks to software development and distribution and by giving the patent holders legal power to completely prohibit software developers from using the patented ideas.

  • Learn like a pro

    An initiative to bring Free Software in the education sector by increasing the digital sovereignty and competence of students and teachers. Created by the Zurich chapter, 'Lernen wie die Profis' was awarded the DINAcon Award. The activity is in German.

  • PDFreadersAbgeschlossen

    The PDFreaders initiative aims to shine a spotlight on government organisations that promote proprietary PDF readers. With the help of activists across Europe, we have contacted these organisations and told them how they can improve their websites to respect our freedom. On pdfreaders.org we present Free Software PDF readers for all major operating systems.

  • DRM.info

    DRM.info ist eine von der FSFE initiierte gemeinschaftliche Plattform, um über die Gefahren von Digitalem Restriktionsmanagement zu informieren und um die Bedenken verschiedener Gruppen auszudrücken. Zu den Unterstützern von DRM.info gehören Organisationen für digitale Freiheit, Verbraucherschützer, Netz-Aktivisten und Bibliotheksorganisationen.

  • Microsoft vs. EU Antitrust CaseAbgeschlossen

    In 2001 the European Union started investigating Microsoft's dominant position in the market for desktop operating systems. The FSFE represented the interests of Free Software developer as a public interest organisation who cannot be bought off. Thanks to the excellent work by all involved parties, the case was won in all rulings up to the European Court of Justice in 2012.

  • FOSS4SMEsAbgeschlossen

    FOSS4SMEs was a two-year collaborative Erasmus+ project to spread and increase knowledge about Free Software. The FSFE collaborate with the other partners to develop free online educational resources for managers and employees of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

  • EURA Slovakia caseAbgeschlossen

    The Slovak company EURA faced fines of 5600 euros for not purchasing and use Microsoft Windows operating system for submitting electronic tax reports. The Slovak tax administration gave EURA the option to either buy and use Microsoft Windows or face the fines. The FSFE assisted in this case advocating for platform-neutral solutions for such procedures. Unfortunately, the court ruled against Free Software and Open Standards, but we were able to raise awareness about these wrongdoings in Slovakia and beyond.

  • Unlock Education in the NetherlandsAbgeschlossen

    This activity was specifically targeted at the Dutch education sector, with the aim of enabling citizens to have free access to education and public institutions, both online and offline. By promoting the mandatory use of Open Standards and platform-independent access to all materials, students and parents will be able fulfil their potential for personal growth and development without being dependent on a company.

  • AVM GPL violationAbgeschlossen

    Can a company modify GPL-licensed software on a third-party device? Router manufacturer AVM accused Cybits of copyright and trademark infringement for modifying the original router firmware, which is largely based on the Linux kernel. Together with gpl-violations.org, we successfully convinced the court that the terms of the GPL licence are binding: software under this licence can be freely modified and installed, even if it is supplied as part of the firmware of an embedded device.

  • Internet Governance Forum (IGF)Abgeschlossen

    Das Internet Governance Forum (IGF) ist ein globales Richtlinien-Diskussionsforum der Vereinten Nationen, das als ein Ableger des Weltgipfels der Vereinten Nationen zur Informationsgesellschaft (WSIS) entstanden ist. Die FSFE verfolgte das IGF um sicher zu stellen, dass die diskutierten Richtlinien digitale Freiheit im Allgemeinen und Freie Software im Speziellen nicht gefährden.

  • SELFAbgeschlossen

    Das SELF Projekt (Wissenschaft, Erziehung und Bildung in Freiheit), hat das erstellen einer Quelle von Bildungsmaterial über Freie Software und Offenen Standards zum Ziel. Dies wird durch das zur Verfügung stellen einer Plattform für gemeinschaftliche Entwicklung von Bildungsmaterial, sowie durch Engagement in die Entwicklung von heute in diesem Bereich fehlendes Bildungsmaterial erreicht.

  • MS-OOXMLAbgeschlossen

    Since the beginning of the standardisation process for Microsoft's Office Open XML - OOXML (hereafter MS-OOXML), the FSFE has raised serious doubts about whether MS-OOXML can be considered open. FSFE was the first to raise the issue in the community, led the movement against the standardisation of MS-OOXML, and has been closely following developments over the years.

  • IPRED2Abgeschlossen

    Die Europäischen Kommission hat eine zweite Richtlinie zur Durchsetzung "geistiger Eigentums Rechte" vorgeschlagen. Das Ziel dieser Richtlinie ist die Kriminalisierung aller "vorsätzlichen, kommerziellen" Rechtsverletzungen und die Teilhabe der Rechteinhaber an den Untersuchungen. Die FSFE zeigte den EU Institutionen auf, wie solche Gesetze den Mißbrauch des Rechtssystems fördern und eine abschreckende Wirkung auf gesetzestreue Tätigkeiten haben.

  • GPLv3Abgeschlossen

    Im Jahr 2006 findet die einjährige Beratungsphase zum Entwurf der GNU General Public License Version 3 statt. Diese Lizenz, gewöhnlich "Die GPL" genannt, ist die bei weitem meistgenutzte Lizenz für Freie Software. Die Free Software Foundation Europe unterstützt diesen Prozess indem sie das allgemeine Verständnis über die GPL verbessert, anderen hilft an diesem Prozess teilzunehmen, Informationen veröffentlicht und Konferenzen organisiert.

  • World Intellectual Property OrganizationAbgeschlossen

    Die World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) ist eine von 16 spezialisierten Agenturen des Systems der Vereinten Nationen. Ihre Rolle ist die Verwaltung von 23 internationalen Verträgen zu verschiedenen Aspekten begrenzter Monopole auf Wissen. Als Beobachter der WIPO und gemeinsam mit einer globalen Koalition anderer Teilnehmer mit ähnlichen Zielen, arbeitete die FSFE daran, sie zur "Weltorganisation für geistigen Reichtum" umzugestalten.

  • World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)Abgeschlossen

    The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) was a two-summit UN conference organised by the ITU to propose important cornerstones for the information and knowledge society. The FSFE participated with other civil societies to ensure that the principles of the digital age would protect digital freedom, knowledge sharing, access to information and Free Software.

  • Brave GNU WorldAbgeschlossen

    The Brave GNU World was a monthly column published from 1999 to 2004, addressed at both technical and non-technical readers. Its aim was to provide an insight into current projects and developments based on the Free Software philosophy. The Brave GNU World was translated into 9 languages, making it probably the most widely distributed monthly column in the world.

  • GNU Business NetworkAbgeschlossen

    The GNU Business Network had the vision to network all companies, developers and users in and around Free Software in a way that the potential synergies are encouraged and informed decisions become possible.

  • Classification of Free Software as a World Cultural HeritageAbgeschlossen

    The goal was to have Free Software classified by UNESCO as an Intangible World Heritage and registered in the World Memory Register (another UNESCO project). The Free Software community and UNESCO share the same values of freedom, equality and fraternity. Such recognition would be a great boost for Free Software.

  • AGNULA: A GNU/Linux Audio distributionAbgeschlossen

    The AGNULA project aimed to create a fully functional, completely Free Software GNU/Linux distribution for professional audio users. Run by key players in the audio community, and funded by the European Commission, the FSFE was a partner in the project, taking care of the legal issues, its long-term aspects, and making sure that the interests of the Free Software community were heard.

  • EUCD - Copyright extensions that harmAbgeschlossen

    The European Copyright Directive (EUCD) was the European equivalent of the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). These laws lead to the creation of monopolies and cartels, and pose serious obstacles to freedom of speech and the press by providing means for digital censorship. The FSFE has been actively involved in opposing such harmful legislation.

  • TUX&GNU@school columnAbgeschlossen

    The TUX&GNU@school column was a regular column about Free Software in education written by by Mario Fux. It informed about educational Free Software, useful web sites on the topic and other interesting topics for teachers, students and all software freedom advocates.

  • We speak about Free SoftwareAbgeschlossen

    Free Software is often referred to as "Open Source". But we are convinced that Free Software is the better term: easier to understand, harder to *****, well-defined, providing additional value, and offering freedom. We connected companies, organisations and even co-founders of the Open Source movement that prefer to use the term Free Software.