by Amanda Plachte

Box, a competitive cloud storage company that believes those committed to doing good should have the best tools available to them, has not seen much profit since it was founded in 2005, nor does it expect to do so in the foreseeable future. In the last fiscal year, which ended January 31, the company had earned a revenue of more than $120 million but suffered a $170 million loss due to the continuous investing in its own growth, according to this March 24 Mashable article written by author Jason Abbruzzese.

Abbruzzese notes that the cloud storage industry is one of the fastest growing in the tech world and it is incredibly competitive. Box’s biggest competitors are Dropbox, Google, Microsoft and Cisco. Considering how new Box is and in comparison to deep-pocketed technology giants like Google, competing can be difficult when services such as Google Drive have had a recent drop in price.

With the potential threat of future operations being harmed, the company needed something more effective to set itself apart. In this more-recent Mashable article, author Karissa Bell, details the launch of Box’s new Box.org service. This new service will offer free and discounted licenses to nonprofit organizations around the world.

“In many case, they’re just not as experienced,” said Karen Appleton, Box’s senior vice president of global alliances. “They have created these organizations to solve a problem and they are well-versed in that problem but they aren’t well-versed in how technology can aid them. We want to solve that problem of access and put these organizations on equal ground.”

What organizations qualify?

Those eligible for the Box.org services are organizations officially designated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving a charitable or philanthropic mission to benefit communities. Nonprofits with less than 10 employees qualify for free services whereas organizations with more than 10 employees receive a 50 percent discount.

What organizations don’t qualify?

Not all nonprofit organizations are eligible for the free or discounted services. Hospitals and large health care organizations do not qualify unless the entity addresses a special public such as the low-income population or substance abuse programs. Other ineligible organizations include government-affiliated and political groups, schools and individuals.

What organizations have benefited so far?

Box already has more than a thousand nonprofit customers including well-known organizations like the Livestrong Foundation, World Bank Group and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Customers of Box.org are able to securely share internal and external files anytime from anywhere in the world.

Let us know what you think! Will efforts such as this keep companies like Box afloat? Don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Pinterest.

Images via Box.org and Mashable