French Data Network (FDN) is a French non-profit organization ( association loi 1901) founded on June 2, 1992. Its purpose is: "the promotion, use and development of the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

and

Usenet Usenet () is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979, and it was ...

networks in accordance with their ethics, in particular by encouraging non-commercial use for research and educational purposes", "the defense of public liberties on the Internet and the defense of the neutrality of telecommunication networks".Nouveaux statuts
/ref> FDN is the oldest

Internet Service Provider An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...

in France still in business, offering RTC (since 1992),

ADSL Asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) is a type of digital subscriber line (DSL) technology, a data communications technology that enables faster data transmission over copper telephone lines than a conventional voiceband modem can provide. ...

(since 2005) and

VPN A virtual private network (VPN) extends a private network across a public network and enables users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network. The be ...

(since 2013) access to its members. It is a founding member of

Gitoyen Gitoyen is an Economic Interest Group based in France gathering several companies and non-profits to share efforts to provide internet services to non-profits. It is effectively a telecom operator, providing tier 2 services to its members. Memb ...

, a non-profit tier 2 operator. FDN has also been politically active, taking a strong position against the

HADOPI law The French HADOPI law or Creation and Internet law (french: Haute Autorité pour la Diffusion des Œuvres et la Protection des droits d'auteur sur Internet, ; or, loosely in English, "Supreme Authority for the Distribution of Works and Protection o ...

. During the internet blackout in some countries during the

Arab spring The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...

, it proposed RTC services to anyone able to access international phone calls. It has a strong position against censorship and in favor of

network neutrality Network neutrality, often referred to as net neutrality, is the principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) must treat all Internet communications equally, offering users and online content providers consistent rates irrespective of co ...

. FDN is a founding member of the FDN Federation.

References

External links

* {{Official website Non-profit organizations based in France Internet service providers of France