Wikipedia Raises 6.2 Million Dollars
Thanks to contributions of $6.2 million, the financial future of the free encyclopedia Wikipedia in 2009 is secured.
The record donations have surpassed the $6 million expectations of the Wikipedia Foundation, the non-profit body behind the free project, with a personal appeal by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales back in December rousing a huge amount of support. Shortly before the end of last year, concerns were high at Wikipedia that their financial goal would not be reached. This caused Wales to make his personal call for financial help, which was placed on the Wikipedia website instead of the usual donation plea banner. In the nine days that followed, 50.000 donations at a value of over $2 million had been pledged. By Jan 2, over 125.000 individual donors had contributed to the final sum of a good $6.2 million, making the campaign in the words of the Organization, "the most ambitious and successful campaign in the history of the Foundation."

With the fiscal year 2008/2009 ending on June 30, 2009, Wikipedia's financial needs are estimated at 5.974.000 USD. The money will be used to maintain and further develop the Foundation's technical infrastructure, secure the employment of its 23 permanent employees and helps to cover the cost of Wikipedia Academies and in-person workshops. "You have proven that Wikipedia matters to you, and that you support our mission: to bring free knowledge to the planet, free of charge and free of advertising." says Wales in his thank-you message. All donations over $6 million will be put in a reserve fund to offset operating costs beyond the current fiscal year.
The Foundation website explains exactly how the revenue will be spent. The financial report will be automatically sent to donors by email as soon as it's available. The report for 2007/2008 can also be viewed on the website.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Akamai Will Host kernel.org
The organization dedicated to cloud-based solutions has agreed to host kernel.org to deliver long-term stability for the development team.
-
Linux Kernel 6.14 Released
The latest Linux kernel has arrived with extra Rust support and more.
-
EndeavorOS Mercury Neo Available
A new release from the EndeavorOS team ships with Plasma 6.3 and other goodies.
-
Fedora 42 Beta Has Arrived
The Fedora Project has announced the availability of the first beta release for version 42 of the open-source distribution.
-
Dash to Panel Maintainer Quits
Charles Gagnon has stepped away as maintainer of the popular Dash to Panel Gnome extension.
-
CIQ Releases Security-Hardened Version of Rocky Linux
If you're looking for an enterprise-grade Linux distribution that is hardened for business use, there's a new version of Rocky Linux that's sure to make you and your company happy.
-
Gnome’s Dash to Panel Extension Gets a Massive Update
If you're a fan of the Gnome Dash to Panel extension, you'll be thrilled to hear that a new version has been released with a dock mode.
-
Blender App Makes it to the Big Screen
The animated film "Flow" won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 97th Academy Awards held on March 2, 2025 and Blender was a part of it.
-
Linux Mint Retools the Cinnamon App Launcher
The developers of Linux Mint are working on an improved Cinnamon App Launcher with a better, more accessible UI.
-
New Linux Tool for Security Issues
Seal Security is launching a new solution to automate fixing Linux vulnerabilities.