The Free-Net has three basic classes of users. Registered Users are users who have signed up for service but who are not members of the corporation. Registered users are essentially “Free” users. They are not billed for their usage of the system. In return they are entitled to internet access using a GPFN dial-up account but are only offered a Cshell with its component text-only web browser and text based e-mail reader. They have 5 Mb of disk quota in the mail system and 2 Mb of disk quota for personal files and downloads in their home account. They are guaranteed one hour of usage per day.

Individual members have paid a membership fee (currently $24 per annum) to become a member of corporation. The constitution of GPFN allows for the contribution of service or goods-in-kind in lieu of the membership fee. Individual members are entitled to full participation in the governance of the corporation including voice and vote at all public meetings and the opportunity to be elected to the board of directors.

From a system usage perspective, institutional members are entitled to the same access privileges as Registered Users except that they:

1. Are guaranteed unlimited dial-up access but only in one-hour blocks of time;
2. Are permitted personal web pages within their home directory;
3. Can purchase additional services for their account such as increased quota, graphical PPP dial-up access, database access, or virtual web hosting.

Institutional memberships are intended for community groups and organizations comprised of more than one person. As such, the same rights, responsibilities,  privileges and opportunities exist to them as for Individual members with the following exceptions:

1. They are permitted 5 Mb disk quota within the public web space of GPFN;
2. Although they are only entitled to 1 e-mail account, they can have up to four e-mail aliases to forward mail to off-site accounts;
3. The membership fee is currently $48 per annum.

A number of additional services are available to members only. These services include:

1. Increased quota for personal directory space, public web space, or incoming e-mail space;
2. PPP dial-up access so that members can dial in to the Free-Net’s modem pool and use their Netscape, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Outlook or other graphical browser or POP mail client to access the Free-Net’s resources;
3. Subscribing to a database within GPFN’s hosted database servers;
4. Subscribing to a virtual domain web hosting service whereby the member can have a web site with the domain name of their own choosing but hosted on GPFN’s servers.

The costs for some of these services are not yet determined but they are all billed on the basis of a calendar year.

As a holdover from the default implementation of Csuite, a number of current GPFN memberships are held as “family” memberships. This is a membership category  employed by the Chebucto Community Network but never formally adopted by GPFN. However, a small number of members found an orphaned page on GPFN’s web site and sent in a cheque for $40 for a family membership. GPFN decided to honour this membership option.

During the JAD session, GPFN stakeholders decided that they wanted any new system to have the option of supporting family memberships. Upon further discussion, it was agreed that the new system should have the capability of supporting a number of “aggregator” type accounts. Another example of such an account would be a company or non-profit group who has given a donation to the Free-Net. In exchange for the donation, GPFN would provide memberships at a reduced cost or at no cost to members of that company or group.

Such an “affinity” program would give GPFN a way of forming and cultivating strategic partnerships with other community groups and would necessitate a special pricing  option for some members who also belong to the partnering organization.