FY2018 Annual Report

Highlighting activities and detailed financials for Fiscal Year 2018

(October 1, 2017 - September 30, 2018)

Licensing

Educating you about free software licenses, advocating for copyleft and enforcing the GNU General Public License

Campaigns

Empowering you to understand, adopt, develop, and defend free software

Tech

Providing infrastructure to accelerate development and distribution of the free software you need

Operations

Running an efficient, effective nonprofit, using free software, supported by you

{% comment {

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 + International license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

}%}

The Free Software Foundation is a leader in the international movement for computer user freedom. We defend the rights of all software users and encourage the development and use of free "as in freedom" software.

This annual report highlights the Foundation's activities and achievements in fiscal year 2018 (October 1, 2017 â September 30, 2018) and includes a detailed financial statement.
@@ -107,7 +111,7 @@ materials, adding reviews of new licenses and articles on current topics and issues in free software licensing.
-
+

Dave Thompson, developer, speaking at LibrePlanet 2018 about GNU Guix.

Photo credit: Kori Feener, 2018. CC BY-SA 4.0

FY2018 at a glance
@@ -128,7 +132,7 @@ current topics and issues in free software licensing.

visitors to the Free Software Directory

Respects Your Freedom certification
-
+

The FSF's Respects Your Freedom (RYF) product certification program encourages the creation and sale of hardware that will do as much as possible to respect your freedom and privacy.
@@ -136,7 +140,10 @@ possible to respect your freedom and privacy.
Minifree Libreboot X200 Tablet.

Why I joined the FSF

"The FSF supports the freedom to use devices I own as I see fit, and to be secure in the knowledge that the software I'm using isn't compromising my privacy."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "The FSF supports the freedom to use devices I own as I see fit, and to be secure in the knowledge that the software I'm using isn't compromising my privacy." +}%}

Campaigns

The FSF campaigns team identifies important opportunities for free @@ -177,12 +184,15 @@ the legislative action under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to reverse the repeal, and a motion to restore net neutrality passed in May, 2018. Various states, including California, Maine, and New York, have ongoing legal and legislative efforts to restore net neutrality.

A photo of a LibrePlanet speaker in front of a chalkboard.

Kat Thornton giving a talk on "Pathways for discovery of free software"

Credit: Kori Feener, 2018. CC BY-SA 4.0

Why I joined the FSF

"The movement [against] net neutrality being abolished inspired me to join the FSF and help out other foundations to help ensure a free Internet and free world."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "The movement [against] net neutrality being abolished inspired me to join the FSF and help out other foundations to help ensure a free Internet and free world." +}%}

LibrePlanet conference celebrates its tenth anniversary

The tenth annual LibrePlanet was held @@ -230,7 +240,7 @@ Commons, The Document Foundation, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and more. Here in Boston, we visited the Apple Store and talked with shoppers about their digital rights and how Apple devices abuse those rights using DRM.

Protester holds "Eliminate DRM" signs outside of Apple store.

Protesters showed their opposition to DRM and conversed with passersby at the Apple store in downtown Boston.

Credit: Free Software Foundation, 2008. Public Domain Mark 1.0

@@ -262,7 +272,11 @@ rights using DRM.

FY2019 Annual Report

Highlighting activities and detailed financials for Fiscal Year 2019

(October 1, 2018 - September 30, 2019)

Licensing

Educating you about free software licenses, advocating for copyleft and enforcing the GNU General Public License

Campaigns

Empowering you to understand, adopt, develop, and defend free software

Tech

Providing infrastructure to accelerate development and distribution of the free software you need

Operations

Running an efficient, effective nonprofit, using free software, supported by you

{% comment {

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 + International license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

}%}

The Free Software Foundation is a leader in the international movement for computer user freedom. We defend the rights of all software users and encourage the development and use of free "as in freedom" software.

This annual report highlights the Foundation's activities and achievements in fiscal year 2019 (October 1, 2018 â September 30, 2019) and includes a detailed financial statement.
@@ -96,11 +100,11 @@ certified devices to forty-six. We have been working with the tech team to launch a new version of the RYF website. The current page simply lists each certification chronologically. The new site enables users to browse and search by categories and retailers.
-
+

ThinkPenguin exhibitor table at LibrePlanet 2019. ThinkPenguin offers many products with RYF certification.

Credit: Free Software Foundation 2019. CC BY-SA.

FY2019 at a glance

@@ -122,7 +126,7 @@ users to browse and search by categories and retailers.

packages in the Free Software Directory

Respects Your Freedom certification

The FSF's Respects Your Freedom (RYF) product certification program encourages the creation and sale of hardware that will do as much as possible to respect your freedom and privacy.

@@ -138,7 +142,10 @@ possible to respect your freedom and privacy.

Why I joined the FSF

"I've used GNU software for years and wanted to support the FSF in general."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "I've used GNU software for years and wanted to support the FSF in general." +}%}

Campaigns

The FSF campaigns team identifies important opportunities for free @@ -146,7 +153,7 @@ software adoption, education, and development; empowers people against specific threats to their freedom; and implements strategies to move us closer to a free society. This year welcomed two new members to the campaigns team, Greg Farough and ZoÃ« Kooyman.

A photo of a panel at LibrePlanet 2019.

There are plenty of opportunities to meet and greet during every annual LibrePlanet conference.

Credit: RubÃ©n RodrÃguez, 2019. CC BY-SA 4.0

Community meetings:

@@ -212,7 +219,7 @@ Deb Nicholson both shared their work, talking about "OpenStreetMap" mapping developments and the free software community challenges we face.

International Day Against DRM

For IDAD 2019, themed "Right to read," we called on Pearson and other @@ -233,7 +240,7 @@ encourage all readers to use them, whether on the latest hardcover bestseller or the textbook you use in class (while you still have one).

They have been translated into ten different languages.

Photo of two books, both wrapped in a dust jacket that says "Eliminate DRM. Uphold the right to learn."

In 2019, we designed dust jackets that you can slip onto a book to help raise awareness around DRM.

Credit: Free Software Foundation, 2019. CC BY-SA 3.0

@@ -269,7 +276,10 @@ one).

Thank you for the Bulletin

"I received the FSF Bulletin last week and would like to thank you! I really enjoyed reading it. I know it may be costly to produce such a things, but, in my opinion, they are important."

{% separator { + "title": "Thank you for the Bulletin", + "quote": "I received the FSF Bulletin last week and would like to thank you! I really enjoyed reading it. I know it may be costly to produce such a things, but, in my opinion, they are important." +}%}

Tech

Infrastructure for free software development and activism

@@ -277,7 +287,7 @@ one).

Email server upgrades: GNU Mailman servers at lists.fsf.org and lists.gnu.org were upgraded
New RYF website:
New RYF website:
CIVICRM upgrade: We recently upgraded CiviCRM to its latest version. We worked on a script that helps streamline the process of rebasing our custom patches onto CiviCRM core.

The FSF tech team and several volunteers and attendees pose at LibrePlanet 2019.

Every year at LibrePlanet, technical voluteers and staff work together to keep the conference running smoothly and free.

Credit: Anonymous, CC BY 4.0

Working Together for Free Software

- - - - - - - -

+ + + + + + + +

Why I joined the FSF

"I'm renewing my membership today because over the past two years I've come to realize just how big of a role proprietary software plays in the problems in our society, and I've seen the vitality of free software. I fully support the Foundation in its work."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "I'm renewing my membership today because over the past two years I've come to realize just how big of a role proprietary software plays in the problems in our society, and I've seen the vitality of free software. I fully support the Foundation in its work." +}%}

Financial Statement

A pie chart

{% + matplotlib { + "filename": "fa2019", + "data" : [ + {"title": "Program\nServices", + "values": 1076394, + "colors": "steelblue"}, + {"title": "Management\nand General", + "values": 95105, + "colors": "royalblue"}, + {"title": "Fundraising", + "values": 65639, + "colors": "dodgerblue"} + ] + } +%}

The following is a visualization of the Free Software Foundation's FY 2019 financial statement. The original documents can be found at https://www.fsf.org/about/financial.

@@ -529,6 +557,7 @@ Fund.

FY2020 Annual Report

Highlighting activities and detailed financials for Fiscal Year 2020

(October 1, 2019 - September 30, 2020)

Licensing

Educating you about free software licenses, advocating for copyleft and enforcing the GNU General Public License

Campaigns

Empowering you to understand, adopt, develop, and defend free software

Tech

Providing infrastructure to accelerate development and distribution of the free software you need

Operations

Running an efficient, effective nonprofit, using free software, supported by you

{% comment {

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 + International license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

}%}

The Free Software Foundation is a leader in the international movement for computer user freedom. We defend the rights of all software users and encourage the development and use of free "as in freedom" software.

This annual report highlights the Foundation's activities and achievements in fiscal year 2020 (October 1, 2019 â September 30, 2020) and includes a detailed financial statement.
@@ -96,7 +100,7 @@ website.
more accessible as an ongoing resource. We also updated an entry on trade secrets in the GPL FAQ, as well as updates for other resources such as our license recommendation page.
-
+

John Sullivan, Executive Director of the FSF, does a presentation at the FSF Continuing Legal Education Seminar in Raleigh, North Carolina, in October 2019.

Credit: Free Software Foundation, 2019. CC BY-SA 4.0

@@ -121,7 +125,7 @@ such as our license recommendation page.

FY2017 Annual Report

Highlighting activities and detailed financials for Fiscal Year 2017

(October 1, 2016 - September 30, 2017)

Licensing

Educating you about free software licenses, advocating for copyleft and enforcing the GNU General Public License

Campaigns

Empowering you to understand, adopt, develop, and defend free software

Tech

Providing infrastructure to accelerate development and distribution of the free software you need

Operations

Running an efficient, effective nonprofit, using free software, supported by you

{% comment {

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 + International license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

}%}

The Free Software Foundation is a leader in the international movement for computer user freedom. We defend the rights of all software users and encourage the development and use of free "as in freedom" software.

This annual report highlights the Foundation's activities and achievements in fiscal year 2017 (October 1, 2016 â September 30, 2017) and includes a detailed financial statement.

Portrait of John Sullivan

Software filters the information we receive about the world and the messages we put out into the world, and that software must be free "as in freedom."

@@ -70,7 +74,7 @@

FSF associate members drive this work, through their ongoing financial contributions, their commitment to the movement, and their sustained, informed, effective personal advocacy. If you haven't joined us yet, we need your support. We may be up against billions of dollars, but since we are fighting for billions of regular users, we have a massive advantage in numbers â so long as we can reach everyone. Please join us and help build these freedom-protecting defenses, without delay.

Yours in freedom,

Signature

John Sullivan

Executive Director

SEPTEMBER 2018

@@ -104,7 +108,7 @@

In FY17, we celebrated the tenth anniversary of the GNU General Public License version 3 (GPL). This is the free software copyleft license that ensures the user's right to run, study, share, and modify software. In addition to being the steward of the GPL, the FSF holds copyright on much of the GNU operating system. The licensing team spent the year accepting copyright assignments from software developers and corporations, investigating GPL violations, and answering licensing questions from the community.

We championed copylefted projects, publishing another seven installments in an ongoing series of conversations with free software developers who choose GNU licenses for their work. We also certified a record number of devices under our Respects Your Freedom certification program, which identifies devices that do as much as possible to respect user freedom.

Along with answering hundreds of licensing questions from the public, dedicated volunteers continued to expand and improve the Free Software Directory for nearly two million annual visitors, and we made inroads with government, helping the US Department of Defense to distribute free software. We also organized volunteers to create a workaround for Web site maintainers who want to register as an agent under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) while avoiding the nonfree JavaScript the process currently requires.

Photo of a man with light brown hair, glasses, and a brown, white, and red sweater, holding two small mobile phones in his hands.

Denver Gingerich, a developer of packages under the AGPLv3 and other GNU licenses, speaking at LibrePlanet 2017 about free software for mobile phones.

CREDIT: Kori Feener, CC-BY 4.0

FY2017 at a glance

@@ -121,12 +125,15 @@

visitors to the Free Software Directory

Respects Your Freedom certification

The FSF's Respects Your Freedom product certification program encourages the creation and sale of hardware that will do as much as possible to respect your freedom and privacy.

In FY17, fifteen devices from Technoethical became RYF certified: six laptops, two docking stations, a mainboard, three WiFi USB adapters, two internal WiFI devices, and a Bluetooth USB adapter. RYF certification was also awarded to three devices from Vikings: a USB stereo sound adapter, a mainboard, and a laptop, bringing the number of RYF certified devices to twenty-seven.

Why I joined the FSF

"Free software â the GNU/Linux platform in particular â is what made it possible twenty years ago for me to learn the skills to become a professional system administrator. It has been a rewarding career!"

A photo of a wall in Florida. Spraypainted on the wall is 'DRM' with a red circle and crossed out.

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "Free software â the GNU/Linux platform in particular â is what made it possible twenty years ago for me to learn the skills to become a professional system administrator. It has been a rewarding career!" +}%}

A photo of a wall in Florida. Spraypainted on the wall is 'DRM' with a red circle and crossed out.

34th Street Wall, Gainesville, Florida

Credit: Gavin Baker, CC-BY-SA 4.0

@@ -143,7 +150,7 @@ International Day Against DRM

Encrypted Media Extensions (EME) is just another way to dress up DRM. The FSF and the free software community organized to oppose a proposal by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to make EME a Web standard. We called and wrote W3C president Tim Berners-Lee, asking him to keep the Web free. While we lost this battle, and EME became a Web standard, we're looking at our options for next steps. We are not giving up hope for a free Web, even if its inventor did.

Free people, free net

Internet freedom in the United States found itself on the national stage in 2017. Over the course of the year, Ajit Pai became chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and instigated a war against net neutrality. The FSF joined with dozens of other organizations to raise awareness and organize in support of net neutrality.

Sumana Harihareswara gives the closing keynote at LibrePlanet 2017

Credit: Kori Feener, CC-BY 4.0

@@ -168,7 +175,10 @@ International Day Against DRM

Why I joined the FSF

"To fight the dystopia of a DRM-overgrown world."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "To fight the dystopia of a DRM-overgrown world." +}%}

Tech

Infrastructure for free software development and activism

@@ -188,7 +198,7 @@ International Day Against DRM

And the team collaborates with the free software community, maintaining gnu.org with the help of volunteers, and working with interns who are advancing their skills and knowledge in working with and creating free software.

The team introduced some new infrastructure using distributed Ceph storage and multiple KVM hosts for our new virtual machines. They started the next round of upgrades, including the implementation of a new mail server stack supporting over three thousand free software project mailing lists, and improving the LibrePlanet conference streaming setup by using Ansible to manage the laptops used for streaming, introducing new hardware, and using HUBAngl (streaming software created by an FSF intern).

A tiered classroom, filled with people. A person stands at the front of the room, beneath a large projection screen, giving a talk.

The tech team maintains the free software infrastructure for all FSF operations, including the annual LibrePlanet conference.

Credit: Kori Feener, CC-BY 4.0

Defending user freedom with free software

@@ -206,20 +216,38 @@ International Day Against DRM

Amazon EC2 instances

Working Together for Free Software

- - - - - - -

+ + + + + + +

The FSF acts as fiscal sponsor for free software projects and events whose scope and purpose align with the FSFâs mission. Participating projects benefit from the FSFâs nonprofit status, administrative infrastructure, and fundraising expertise. In FY17, these eight projects received $67,130 in direct support from the free software community via the Working Together for Free Software Fund.

Why I joined the FSF

"I discovered GNU, and then learned about all the amazing work the FSF does for the tech community."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "I discovered GNU, and then learned about all the amazing work the FSF does for the tech community." +}%}

Financial Statement

A pie chart

{% + matplotlib { + "filename": "fa2017", + "data" : [ + {"title": "Program\nServices", + "values": 1076394, + "colors": "chocolate"}, + {"title": "Management\nand General", + "values": 95105, + "colors": "sienna"}, + {"title": "Fundraising", + "values": 65639, + "colors": "brown"} + ] + } +%}

The following is a visualization of the Free Software Foundation's FY 2017 financial statement. The original documents can be found here.

@@ -383,6 +411,7 @@ International Day Against DRM

Donors

This list includes our patrons, in-kind supporters, and those who receive ThankGNUs for donations totaling over $500 in a year. The FSF appreciates and thanks the thousands of individual donors, members, and corporate patrons worldwide who make our work possible.

Institutional Support

@@ -551,18 +580,22 @@ International Day Against DRM

Why I joined the FSF

"I simply use GNU tools every day."

{% separator { + "title": "Why I joined the FSF", + "quote": "I simply use GNU tools every day." +}%}

An image of a keyboard

Associate Membership

Join the Free Software Foundation

Our mission is to promote computer user freedom and defend the rights of all software users, worldwide. Though free software is used more widely than ever, it is under threat from a wide range of interests that profit from controlling and surveilling computer users. You can help put control over computers back in the hands of the people who use them! Try a free software program, or switch to a free operating system. Make a donation, or make a long term commitment to free software by becoming a Free Software Foundation Associate Member. Learn more at fsf.org.

Leadership and Staff

Board of Directors

Richard M. Stallman

Founder and President

Gerald J. Sussman

@@ -581,86 +614,87 @@ International Day Against DRM

Leadership

John Sullivan

Executive Director

John Hsieh

Deputy Director

Licensing

Donald Robertson

Licensing and Compliance Manager

Craig Topham

Campaigns

Molly de Blanc

Campaigns Manager

Dana Morgenstein

Outreach and Communications Coordinator

Tech

Andrew Engelbrecht

Senior Systems Administrator

Ian Kelling

Senior Systems Administrator

Chief Technology Officer

Operations

Matt Lavallee

Operations Assistant

Jeanne Rasata

Assistant to the President

FY2018 Annual Report

FY2018 Annual Report

FY2018 at a glance

Respects Your Freedom certification

Why I joined the FSF

Campaigns

Why I joined the FSF

LibrePlanet conference celebrates its tenth anniversary

Why I joined the FSF

Tech

Infrastructure for free software development and activism

Infrastructure for free software development and activism

Working Together for Free Software

Why I joined the FSF

Financial Statement

Donors

Why I joined the FSF

Associate Membership

Join the Free Software Foundation

Leadership and Staff

Board of Directors

Richard M. Stallman

Gerald J. Sussman

Leadership

John Sullivan

John Hsieh

RubÃ©n RodrÃ­guez

Licensing

Donald Robertson

Craig Topham

Campaigns

Molly de Blanc

Dana Morgenstein

Georgia Young

Tech

Andrew Engelbrecht

Ian Kelling

Operations

Matt Lavallee

Jeanne Rasata

FY2019 Annual Report

FY2019 Annual Report

FY2019 at a glance

Respects Your Freedom certification

Why I joined the FSF

Campaigns

Community meetings:

International Day Against DRM

Thank you for the Bulletin

Tech

Infrastructure for free software development and activism

Working Together for Free Software

Why I joined the FSF

Financial Statement

Donors

Why I joined the FSF

Associate Membership

Leadership and Staff

Board of Directors

Leadership

John Sullivan

John Hsieh

RubÃ©n RodrÃ­guez

Licensing

Donald Robertson

Craig Topham

Campaigns

Greg Farough

Dana Morgenstein

ZoÃ« Kooyman

Tech

Andrew Engelbrecht

Ian Kelling

Michael McMahon

Operations

Matt Lavallee

Jeanne Rasata

Dawn Bryanton Peterson

FY2020 Annual Report

FY2020 Annual Report

RubÃ©n RodrÃguez

RubÃ©n RodrÃguez

RubÃ©n RodrÃguez