Linphone
Linphone, operated by France-based Belledonne Communications, provides open-source VoIP, video conferencing, and secure instant messaging software built on the SIP standard, serving European enterprises, telecoms, defense customers, and developers via freemium and white-label professional services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2001
- HeadquartersGrenoble, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
Linphone firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Linphone
- Legal name
- SARL BELLEDONNE COMMUNICATIONS
- Website
- https://linphone.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2001
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Linphone, operated by France-based Belledonne Communications, provides open-source VoIP, video conferencing, and secure instant messaging software built on the SIP standard, serving European enterprises, telecoms, defense customers, and developers via freemium and white-label professional services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Linphone industry classification
Industry- Product category
- VoIP Communications Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132), All Other Telecommunications (517810), Telecommunications (517)
- SIC
- Communications Services, Nec (4899), Services-Telephone Interconnect Systems (7385), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Voice Calling (VoIP) Apps (BPAMACAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- VoIP Access & ITSP Services (HDAIAHAD), Remote Unlock & Visitor Management (Mobile Credentials/Packages) (HSAHAIAL)
Keywords
Where Linphone is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Grenoble
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Linphone business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Free SIP Service: Free VoIP service for audio/video calls and instant messaging using the sip.linphone.org domain, provided at no cost to individual users. This freemium offering drives user adoption and community growth.
- Proprietary Software Licensing: Proprietary licensing of Linphone application, SDK, and server software available for purchase, offering an alternative to the open source GPLv3 license for organizations requiring proprietary usage rights.
- Rebranding/White-Label Services: Customization of Linphone softphone to customer brand identity and enterprise requirements, providing white-label solutions for MSPs, VoIP operators, and organizations seeking branded communication apps.
- Support and Maintenance Contracts: Annual maintenance contracts guaranteeing solution longevity, including technical support, bug fixes, and updates for enterprise customers with active support agreements.
- Server Installation and Configuration: Professional services for optimized server deployment, helping organizations set up and configure Flexisip infrastructure.
- Custom Development: Bespoke feature development and customization services, with personalized quotes for organizations requiring specific functionality or integration.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free SIP Service - Free tier for individual users |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Proprietary License - Commercial licensing for proprietary use |
| Subscription | Annual | Support Contracts - Annual maintenance and support |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Rebranding Services - White-label customization |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels7 records
Linphone product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Linphone develops and provides an open-source VoIP communications platform consisting of a cross-platform softphone, a modular SIP-based server suite (Flexisip), and an embeddable SDK (Liblinphone) for voice, video, and instant messaging. The company monetizes through a free consumer SIP service, proprietary commercial licensing, white-label/rebranding, support contracts, server installation, and custom development for organizations requiring sovereign or embedded deployments.
Product overview
Linphone is a comprehensive VoIP communications platform developed by Belledonne Communications, a French open source company founded in 2010. The product suite consists of three core components: the Linphone softphone (complete application for VoIP, video, and instant messaging across iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Linux), the Flexisip server (SIP-based server suite for account management, presence, chat, and conferences), and the Liblinphone SDK (cross-platform library for embedding VoIP capabilities into custom applications). Additional offerings include Mediastreamer2 (media streaming engine), bcg729 (G.729 codec), encryption modules with ZRTP and post-quantum protection, Flexisip Account Manager (web administration platform), and white-label customization services. The platform supports both open source (GPL v3) and proprietary licensing models.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Liblinphone: Cross-platform SDK (Software Development Kit) on which Linphone is built, enabling VoIP and instant messaging integration into custom applications.
- Flexisip
- Linphone Free SIP Service
Products and services
- Linphone Softphone Complete softphone application for VoIP, video conferencing, and instant messaging available on iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Linux. Supports SIP protocol for calling, presence, and IM. Offered under open source (GPLv3) or proprietary license with white-label customization.
- Flexisip Server SIP-based server suite providing account management, configuration routing, chat, conference, and presence services. Modular architecture suitable for high-volume deployments with PSTN connectivity via B2BUA. Available as open source (AGPLv3) or proprietary license.
- Liblinphone SDK Cross-platform C library underlying the Linphone softphone. Enables VoIP and IM feature integration into mobile and desktop applications with optimized quality for embedded systems. Available as open source or proprietary license.
- Mediastreamer2 Media streaming engine used within Linphone for real-time audio and video handling, capturing, encoding, and transmission management.
- bcg729 Implementation of the ITU G.729 audio codec providing narrowband speech compression for VoIP applications.
- Flexisip Account Manager Web administration platform including FlexiAPI (web API for account and configuration management), remote configuration server, and web administration interface for managing SIP accounts.
- White Label Softphone Customization service allowing organizations to rebrand Linphone with their own brand identity and enterprise-specific requirements for white-label deployment.
- Linphone Free SIP Service Free SIP service allowing users to create a SIP account with the sip.linphone.org domain for audio/video calls, instant messaging, and videoconferencing capabilities.
Companies that use Linphone
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Linphone technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability1 record
Feature6 records
Linphone partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and infrastructure.
- Orange BusinesscoreOrange Business selected Linphone as a technology partner for its Live Collaboration sovereign cloud suite. Linphone provides VoIP and instant messaging capabilities within Orange's sovereign collaboration platform hosted on French SecNumCloud-qualified infrastructure, targeting European organizations seeking alternatives to concentrated global collaboration vendors.
- eXo PlatformcoreTechnology partner within Orange Business Live Collaboration suite, contributing collaboration platform technology to the sovereign European cloud collaboration ecosystem.
- BlueMindcoreTechnology partner within Orange Business Live Collaboration suite, providing messaging and collaboration server technology.
- PexipcoreTechnology partner within Orange Business Live Collaboration suite, contributing video conferencing interoperability technology.
- MailinblacksupportingTechnology partner within Orange Business Live Collaboration suite, providing secure email solutions.
- OnlyOfficesupportingTechnology partner within Orange Business Live Collaboration suite, providing document co-editing capabilities.
- OVH SASinfrastructureCloud infrastructure provider hosting the free Linphone SIP service on machines located in France and Germany. OVH SAS provides the underlying compute and hosting services supporting Linphone's VoIP service operations.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Linphone competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- FreeSWITCH (SignalWire): Open-source telephony platform supporting SIP, voice, video, and messaging, frequently paired with softphone clients. Linphone competes for the same developer/SIP-server workloads and is often considered alongside FreeSWITCH for self-hosted VoIP stacks.
- 3CX: Commercial PBX/UC software vendor with its own softphone and SIP server stack, selling to SMBs and MSPs. Overlaps with Linphone on the white-label softphone, support contracts, and operator/MSP distribution model.
- Wire: End-to-end encrypted messaging, voice, and video platform with strong enterprise/government focus and European roots. Comparable to Linphone's secure-messaging and voice offering on cryptography, European positioning, and regulated-buyer adoption.
- Nextcloud: European open-source collaboration platform (files, chat, video through Nextcloud Talk). Competitor for the same sovereign, EU-hosted collaboration stack that Linphone targets via Orange Business' Live Collaboration suite.
- Jitsi (8x8): Open-source WebRTC-based video, voice, and conferencing stack comparable to Linphone's SIP softphone/server approach. Both projects target developers and enterprises seeking self-hosted, standards-based real-time communications and compete for the same open-source-real-time-comms mindshare.
- Asterisk (Sangoma): The dominant open-source PBX/telephony platform; Linphone's Flexisip server competes for similar SIP server / telephony workloads, while Linphone's softphone integrates with Asterisk-style deployments in the same VoIP market.
- Element (Matrix.org): Provider of Matrix-based secure messaging and VoIP clients, often adopted by governments and enterprises seeking sovereign communications. Overlaps with Linphone on secure IM, voice, and European open-source positioning.
Broad incumbents
- Zoom Communications: Dominant UCaaS incumbent bundling voice, video, chat, and SIP telephony. Competes with Linphone for enterprise communications budgets, particularly among buyers that prefer a single vendor stack over a self-hosted SIP deployment.
- Microsoft (Teams Phone): Microsoft Teams Phone wraps carrier PSTN/SIP connectivity into the broader Microsoft 365 collaboration bundle. Sets the procurement default against which Linphone's sovereign, open-source SIP stack must justify itself in mid-market and enterprise deals.
Emerging players
- Signal Foundation: Open-source end-to-end encrypted messaging and voice/video app with strong privacy brand. Comparable to Linphone on the encryption-led open-source communications thesis, though primarily consumer- rather than operator/OEM-focused.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Linphone social profiles
Digital presenceLinphone financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Linphone leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Linphone funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Linphone 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 Linphone
What does Linphone do?
Linphone develops and provides an open-source VoIP communications platform consisting of a cross-platform softphone, a modular SIP-based server suite (Flexisip), and an embeddable SDK (Liblinphone) for voice, video, and instant messaging. The company monetizes through a free consumer SIP service, proprietary commercial licensing, white-label/rebranding, support contracts, server installation, and custom development for organizations requiring sovereign or embedded deployments.
Is Linphone a public or private company?
Linphone is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Linphone founded?
Linphone was founded in 2001. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Linphone based?
Linphone is headquartered in Grenoble, France, in the Europe region.
How does Linphone make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Free SIP Service is the primary driver. The others are proprietary Software Licensing, rebranding/White-Label Services, support and Maintenance Contracts, server Installation and Configuration and custom Development.
Who are Linphone's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are FreeSWITCH (SignalWire), 3CX, Wire, Nextcloud, Jitsi (8x8), Asterisk (Sangoma) and Element (Matrix.org). Broad incumbents are Zoom Communications and Microsoft (Teams Phone). Signal Foundation is listed as an emerging player.
Does Linphone have an API?
No public API is recorded for Linphone.
What industry is Linphone in?
Linphone's product category is VoIP Communications Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMACAC, Voice Calling (VoIP) Apps, with a secondary code of HDAIAHAD, VoIP Access & ITSP Services. Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 4899.