FFII Associated with FSF Europe
13th of June 2002 Munich/Hamburg
The Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure (FFII) is now an official associate organisation of the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE).
This follows a decision of the last general assembly of FFII to cooperate more closely with FSF Europe and was greatly welcomed by FSF Europe. The FFII is the first associate organisation of the FSF Europe based in Germany which is a strong Free Software country.
"The FFII has been the backbone of the resistance against fully introducing software patents in Europe", explains Georg Greve, President of Free Software Foundation Europe. "This hard and tedious work is very important because patents on software restrict the freedom of knowledge and software significantly. Strengthening the FFII therefore furthers the cause for Free Software in Germany."
"We have always promoted open information systems as an essential underpinning of an open society", says Hartmut Pilch, president of FFII. "Free software has done more to make our society free and productive than many standardisation efforts and political initiatives have ever achieved. No matter what worthy aim you may be pursuing, be it fair competition, secure infrastructures, innovation, productivity or civil liberty, you often end up writing Free Software."
About the Foundation for Free Information Infrastructure (FFII)
The "Förderverein für eine Freie Informationelle Infrastruktur" (FFII) was founded in Munich 1999 and is non-profit association under german law that promotes a sustainable development of public information goods based on copyright, free competition and open standards. The FFII is a member of the EuroLinux Alliance and is well known for its activities for the protection of information innovation against the abuse of the patent system in Europe.
www.ffii.org
About the Free Software Foundation Europe
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSF Europe) is a charitable non-governmental organization dedicated to all aspects of Free Software in Europe. Access to software determines who may participate in a digital society. Therefore the freedoms to use, copy, modify and redistribute software - as described in the Free Software definition - allow equal participation in the information age. Creating awareness for these issues, securing Free Software politically and legally, and giving people freedom by supporting development of Free Software are central issues of the FSF Europe, which was founded in 2001 as the European sister organization of the Free Software Foundation in the United States.
www.fsfeurope.org
Contact
FSF Europe: Georg C. F. Greve greve@fsfeurope.org phone: +49-40-23809080 fax: +49-40-23809081
FFII: Hartmut Pilch phm@ffii.org phone: +49-89-12789608 fax: +49-89-12789609