| Abbreviation | FFII |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1999, Germany |
| Type | non-profit organization |
| Legal status | Foundation |
| Purpose | Law, Freedom, Privacy |
| Headquarters | Munich, Germany |
| Leader | Benjamin Henrion |
Volunteers | over 1000 |
| Website | www.ffii.org |
The Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure (FFII) is a non-profit organisation based in Munich, Germany, dedicated to establishing a free market in information technology, by the removal of barriers to competition. The FFII played a key organisational role and was very active in the campaign which resulted in the rejection of the EU software patent directive in July 2005.
CNET awarded the FFII the Outstanding contribution to software development award for this work, which was the result of years of research, policy, and action.[1] After the July 2005 victory, FFII has continued to defend a free and competitive software market by working towards adequate patent systems and open standards. Currently the FFII fights against software patents lobbies, not only in Europe but also in other parts of the world.
It was founded as a German registered association under the name Förderverein für eine Freie Informationelle Infrastruktur (FFII) e.V.[2] in 1999 by developer and far-right politics activist Hartmut Pilch.