L'Autre Net
L'Autre Net is a French non-profit association (loi 1901) founded in 2000 providing web and email hosting to approximately 1,000 members — primarily non-profit associations, activists, and individuals — through a volunteer-governed model built entirely on free/libre open-source software.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What L'Autre Net does
L'Autre Net is a French non-profit association (Association loi 1901) founded in 2000 and operating its hosting platform since 2001, serving approximately 1,000 members — primarily non-profit associations, activist organizations, free software communities, and individuals — who collectively govern the organization through a permanent general assembly with no paid employees. All organizational roles, including treasury, technical administration, and correspondence, are performed by volunteers.
The platform is built entirely on free/libre open-source software, centered on the AlternC web-based control panel originally developed by the association's founders. AlternC provides account management, domain hosting, email, FTP, MySQL databases, mailing lists, and SSL certificate administration. The infrastructure runs as a load-balanced distributed system (IPVS with Keepalived) routing to dedicated web/mail servers (Emma and Ella), file servers (Filer1 and Filer2), a MySQL database server (Elea), and a Mailman/control panel server (Elsa), all hosted at the Khéops Organisation datacenter and connected via a 1 Gbps fiber link to GIE Gitoyen's community-operated backbone. Spam filtering relies on SpamAssassin and Postgrey, with ClamAV for antivirus scanning.
L'Autre Net operates as a solidarity-based cooperative funded entirely by annual member dues (cotisations), with all members receiving identical service quotas and a uniform monthly traffic cap of 12 Go per account. The association explicitly refuses commercial pricing logic — no tiered services, no individual quota increases regardless of willingness to pay, no resellers, and no commercial sales force. Distribution is purely self-service through the AlternC panel, and growth is driven by community word-of-mouth within French free software and activist networks. The organization initially received a state subvention to finance founding equipment and has since self-financed subsequent server infrastructure renewal through member dues.
L'Autre Net firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- L'Autre Net
- Legal name
- Association Lautre Net
- Website
- https://lautre.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- L'Autre Net is a French non-profit association (loi 1901) founded in 2000 providing web and email hosting to approximately 1,000 members — primarily non-profit associations, activists, and individuals — through a volunteer-governed model built entirely on free/libre open-source software.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
L'Autre Net industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Web Hosting Services
- NAICS
- Business Associations (813910), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Virtual Desktop & Application Delivery (VDI/DaaS, Remote Apps) (BPAEAIAC)
Keywords
Where L'Autre Net is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
L'Autre Net business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Membership dues (cotisations): L'Autre Net is funded entirely by member cotisations (annual dues). Membership grants access to all hosting services. The association has no paid staff — all treasury, technical, and administrative roles are performed by volunteers. Initial hardware was partially funded by a state secretariat for solidarity economy, with subsequent equipment self-financed through membership fees.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Standard membership — all members receive identical service quotas |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
L'Autre Net product offering
Product offeringCore offering
L'Autre Net is a French non-profit association (loi 1901) that provides associative web hosting, email hosting, MySQL databases, mailing lists, domain management, SSL certificates, and SSH-accessible virtual machines to approximately 1,000 members. Services are delivered through the in-house AlternC control panel and a distributed infrastructure hosted at the Khéops datacenter and connected via 1 Gbps fiber to GIE Gitoyen's backbone. All treasury, technical, and administrative roles are performed by volunteers and the association is funded entirely by annual member cotisations.
Product overview
L'Autre Net is an associative, self-managed web hosting cooperative offering a comprehensive hosting platform centered around the AlternC control panel. The platform provides web hosting, email services with spam protection, MySQL databases, domain management, SSL certificates (via Let's Encrypt), virtual machines with SSH/SFTP access, mailing lists (Mailman), and web statistics. Founded in 2000/2001 and based in Paris, the organization serves approximately 1,000 members through a solidarity-based management model with all roles performed by volunteers. Infrastructure is maintained through participation in GIE Gitoyen for network independence.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Associative Web Hosting Solidarity-based web hosting service providing website hosting and related web services to approximately 1,000 members, funded by annual membership dues and operated by volunteers.
- Email Hosting Email hosting including POP/IMAP access, webmail via Roundcube, spam filtering (SpamAssassin, Postgrey), antivirus protection (ClamAV), and redundant MX/SMTP servers for secondary mail routing.
- MySQL Database Hosting Managed MySQL database server (Elea) with phpMyAdmin web interface for database administration, including automatic daily and weekly backups.
- Domain Management Domain registration and DNS management including sub-domain hosting, DNS zone configuration, and support for various TLDs including .fr and .eu.org.
- SSL Certificates (Let's Encrypt) Automated SSL/TLS certificate issuance and renewal via Let's Encrypt for secure HTTPS on hosted domains.
- Virtual Machines (SSH) On-demand Linux virtual machines providing SSH and SFTP command-line access for advanced members requiring custom configurations on shared infrastructure.
- Mailing Lists (Mailman) Mailing list and discussion forum services powered by Mailman, with NNTP and web access for member communication and community organization.
- Web Statistics (Awstats) Web traffic analytics service providing visitor, bandwidth, and page view reports for hosted websites.
Quantifiable outcome
- Monthly traffic limit of 12 Go per account (non-blocking unless systematically exceeded)
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use L'Autre Net
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
L'Autre Net technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
L'Autre Net partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- GIE GitoyencoreL'Autre Net participates in GIE Gitoyen, an economic interest group that mutualizes internet access costs and independent IT infrastructure maintenance among its members (small companies and associations focused on Internet). Gitoyen is a LIR (Local Internet Registry) with its own IP addresses allocated by RIPE and its own Autonomous System number. L'Autre Net purchases bandwidth through Gitoyen, which includes peering agreements, partial transit, and full commercial transit arrangements. The infrastructure is connected to Gitoyen's backbone via a dedicated 1 Gbps fiber link.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights3 records
L'Autre Net competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Aquilenet: Bordeaux-based non-profit cooperative providing internet access and hosting to members on a mutualized, non-commercial basis. Aquilenet competes with L'Autre Net for French associative members seeking values-aligned infrastructure and operates a comparable member-governed structure.
- Octopuce: French associative hosting provider that also deploys AlternC. Octopuce competes directly for French non-profit and activist members seeking solidarity-based hosting, shares AlternC's software ecosystem with L'Autre Net, and operates with a comparable cooperative governance model.
- Alsace Réseau Neutre: Alsace-based non-profit FAI/hosting association offering associative internet and hosting services. ARN is a direct peer in the French non-profit hosting ecosystem and shares both L'Autre Net's values-based positioning and its reliance on volunteer-driven operations.
- Webelys: French associative hosting organization using AlternC. Webelys addresses the same French non-profit and individual market as L'Autre Net with a similar values-driven proposition, making it a direct competitor and ecosystem partner in the AlternC user community.
- Globenet: Brazilian-rooted non-profit ISP/hosting cooperative historically tied to L'Autre Net (Globenet hosted L'Autre Net's first server "Estelle" in the early 2000s). Globenet is a direct peer in non-commercial associative hosting and shares the same values-driven, free-software-aligned mission.
- Neuronnexion: French associative hosting provider also built on AlternC. Neuronnexion competes for French association members while sharing the AlternC development ecosystem with L'Autre Net, making it a direct peer both commercially and technologically.
- FDN (French Data Network): One of France's oldest non-profit ISPs and the historic reference point for associative digital infrastructure in France. FDN is a direct peer to L'Autre Net in the French non-profit hosting ecosystem and shares values around free software, independence, and member governance.
- Koumbit: Montreal-based non-profit cooperative offering hosting, email, and web services to associations and activists on the same AlternC platform. Koumbit is one of the closest structural analogues to L'Autre Net outside France and serves as a direct technology and governance peer through shared AlternC adoption.
- Tetaneutral.net: Toulouse-based non-profit ISP and hosting cooperative providing associative internet and hosting services on solidarity-economy principles. Tetaneutral.net is a direct peer of L'Autre Net in French non-profit digital infrastructure and shares the values-based, volunteer-driven governance ethos.
Broad incumbents
- Gitoyen: Economic interest group (GIE) that mutualizes internet access and infrastructure costs among French non-profit hosters, including L'Autre Net. Gitoyen is a peer in the broader French non-profit hosting ecosystem and operates an independent network (own AS, RIPE allocations) that L'Autre Net relies on for bandwidth and peering.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
L'Autre Net social profiles
Digital presenceL'Autre Net financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
L'Autre Net leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles16 records
L'Autre Net funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
L'Autre Net 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 L'Autre Net
What does L'Autre Net do?
L'Autre Net is a French non-profit association (loi 1901) that provides associative web hosting, email hosting, MySQL databases, mailing lists, domain management, SSL certificates, and SSH-accessible virtual machines to approximately 1,000 members. Services are delivered through the in-house AlternC control panel and a distributed infrastructure hosted at the Khéops datacenter and connected via 1 Gbps fiber to GIE Gitoyen's backbone. All treasury, technical, and administrative roles are performed by volunteers and the association is funded entirely by annual member cotisations.
Is L'Autre Net a public or private company?
L'Autre Net is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was L'Autre Net founded?
L'Autre Net was founded in 2000. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is L'Autre Net based?
L'Autre Net is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does L'Autre Net make money?
One revenue line is on record: membership dues (cotisations).
Who are L'Autre Net's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Aquilenet, Octopuce, Alsace Réseau Neutre, Webelys, Globenet, Neuronnexion, FDN (French Data Network), Koumbit and Tetaneutral.net. Gitoyen is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does L'Autre Net have an API?
No public API is recorded for L'Autre Net.
What industry is L'Autre Net in?
L'Autre Net's product category is Web Hosting Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAEAIAC, Virtual Desktop & Application Delivery (VDI/DaaS, Remote Apps). Its NAICS code is 813910 and its SIC code is 8600.