CNLL
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersLleida, Spain
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
CNLL firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- CNLL
- Legal name
- Conseil National du Logiciel Libre
- Website
- https://cnll.fr
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where CNLL is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lleida
- HQ country
- Spain
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
CNLL business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Membership dues / federation contributions: The CNLL is funded through membership fees from its 8 regional clusters and member associations. It does not sell commercial products or services.
- Event organization and sponsorships: The CNLL co-organizes or sponsors events such as OW2con, Open Source Experience, APELL conferences, and the Acteurs du Libre contest, which generate sponsorship revenue and support ecosystem visibility.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
CNLL product offering
Product offeringCore offering
CNLL (Conseil National du Logiciel Libre) is a non-profit national federation that aggregates 8 regional clusters representing over 200 French open source software companies (startups, publishers, service firms, consultancies). Its core offerings are not commercial products but federation services: industry advocacy before public authorities, a public directory of French open source companies, an annual open source competition (Acteurs du Libre), industry studies and position papers, a monthly newsletter, and policy positions on topics including open source in public procurement, software patents, open standards, employment, and digital sovereignty.
Product overview
CNLL (Conseil National du Logiciel Libre) is France's national federation representing the free/open source software industry. Rather than offering a unified software platform, CNLL provides a portfolio of association services including: the Annuaire (company directory with cartographic visualization and multi-criteria search), the Acteurs du Libre annual competition recognizing outstanding open source contributors, periodic studies and reports on the French open source market and employment trends, monthly newsletters, and the Territoires Numériques du Libre label for territories committed to free software adoption. These offerings serve the dual purpose of connecting buyers with free software vendors and advocating for policies favoring open source in public procurement, education, and R&D support.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Acteurs du Libre: Annual competition organized by CNLL to highlight major actors of open source in France and Europe, celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2026.
Products and services
- Annuaire des entreprises du logiciel libre en France (Directory of Free Software Companies in France)
Quantifiable outcome
- Representing 8 clusters and 200+ companies making the French open source sector a recognized economic force in national and European policy
Companies that use CNLL
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
CNLL technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
CNLL partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.
- 8 Regional Clusters (members)coreThe CNLL is a federation of 8 regional clusters of open source companies in France. These member clusters form the core of the CNLL's organizational structure and represent companies across all regions of France.
- Abilian SASminorAbilian SAS designed and hosts the CNLL website, which is built on the Wagtail open-source CMS (Python). The site credits Abilian for its implementation.
- OW2 (Open Source Foundation)coreThe CNLL co-organizes OW2con'26 and other OW2 events, and collaborates with OW2 on CRA compliance guidance. OW2 is a non-profit foundation dedicated to open-source software. The CNLL is a co-organizer of the OW2 annual conference.
- APELL (Association of European Open Source Liaisons)coreThe CNLL is a founding member of APELL, a European association representing national open source professional organizations. APELL is cited by the European Commission as the representative body for the European professional open source sector. The CNLL participates in APELL's annual conferences and the APELL Advisory Board.
- Open Source ExperiencecoreThe CNLL collaborates with Open Source Experience, a major French open source conference held annually in Paris. The CNLL co-organizes the 'Acteurs du Libre' award within the Open Source Experience framework and maintains a CNLL Village at the event.
- EuroStackmajorThe CNLL supports EuroStack, an initiative calling for a European digitally sovereign cloud and infrastructure built on open source. The CNLL co-signed the EuroStack letter and advocates for its proposals in European policy discussions.
- OSPO AllianceminorThe CNLL and APELL jointly support the OSPO Alliance, an initiative to promote Open Source Program Offices (OSPOs) in public administrations and companies.
- inno³majorInno³ co-facilitates the CRA (Cyber Resilience Act) working group with the CNLL and has collaborated on a CRA compliance guide. The partnership focuses on regulatory compliance support for open source companies.
- AFUL (Association Francophone des Utilisateurs de Logiciels Libres)minorAFUL is a long-standing supporting partner of the CNLL, sharing mutual goals around open source advocacy, interoperability, and digital rights. AFUL endorsed the CNLL's founding in 2010.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
CNLL competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- OW2: Independent open source foundation that CNLL co-organizes events with (OW2con'26) and collaborates on CRA compliance. OW2 is a French non-profit promoting open source middleware, closely aligned with CNLL's constituency and policy stance.
- AFUL (Association Francophone des Utilisateurs de Logiciels Libres): Long-standing French-speaking free software user association that endorsed CNLL's founding in 2010. AFUL addresses a related but user-side constituency (rather than vendor-side), making it a complementary rather than overlapping peer.
- APELL (Association of European Open Source Liaisons): European federation of national open source professional organizations of which CNLL is a founding member. APELL is cited by the European Commission as the representative body for the European professional open source sector, operating one layer above CNLL.
- Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE): European non-profit advocating for free software in policy, legal, and public-procurement contexts. FSFE is a directly comparable peer with similar advocacy and policy-shaping mission, though with a broader geographic remit.
Broad incumbents
- Open Source Initiative (OSI): Global steward of the Open Source Definition and a long-standing advocacy body. OSI operates at a global standards level while CNLL is national/European — comparable mission, different geographic scope.
- Numeum: France's largest digital technology industry federation representing a broad range of software, services, and platform companies. Numeum is a broader incumbent that overlaps with CNLL on French tech policy advocacy but is not open-source-specific.
- AFNUM: Alliance Française des Industries Numériques, a French federation representing digital industry players. Comparable federation structure with policy advocacy mandate, but with a hardware/digital-industry tilt rather than open source focus.
- Linux Foundation Europe: European arm of the Linux Foundation engaging in EU open source policy and supporting open source projects and communities. A broader incumbent with comparable policy-advocacy function across Europe.
- Syntec Numérique: French professional federation for digital services and software publishers. Comparable federation structure with French policy advocacy focus, overlapping on members and topics but historically aligned with proprietary vendors.
Others
- European DIGITAL SME Alliance: European association representing small and medium-sized ICT companies in EU policy discussions. Thematically adjacent as a SME-focused digital advocacy body; complementary rather than directly competing with CNLL.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
CNLL social profiles
Digital presenceCNLL financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
CNLL leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
CNLL funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
CNLL M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about CNLL
What does CNLL do?
CNLL (Conseil National du Logiciel Libre) is a non-profit national federation that aggregates 8 regional clusters representing over 200 French open source software companies (startups, publishers, service firms, consultancies). Its core offerings are not commercial products but federation services: industry advocacy before public authorities, a public directory of French open source companies, an annual open source competition (Acteurs du Libre), industry studies and position papers, a monthly newsletter, and policy positions on topics including open source in public procurement, software patents, open standards, employment, and digital sovereignty.
Is CNLL a public or private company?
CNLL is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was CNLL founded?
CNLL was founded in 2010. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is CNLL based?
CNLL is headquartered in Lleida, Spain, in the Europe region.
How does CNLL make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Membership dues / federation contributions are the primary driver. The others are event organization and sponsorships.
Who are CNLL's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are OW2, AFUL (Association Francophone des Utilisateurs de Logiciels Libres), APELL (Association of European Open Source Liaisons) and Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE). Broad incumbents are Open Source Initiative (OSI), Numeum, AFNUM, Linux Foundation Europe and Syntec Numérique. European DIGITAL SME Alliance is listed as an others.
Does CNLL have an API?
No public API is recorded for CNLL.