A decisive milestone in the history of the TZDO was the foundation of the EUnet Germany GmbH in 1993 as the first commercial Internet service provider in Germany - directly in the TZDO. But this development was only the beginning. Dortmund and the University of Dortmund were already driving forces behind digitalisation. Together with the DE-NIC project they created the basis for the management of .de domains and contributed significantly to the spread of the Internet in Germany and Europe.

Today the EUnet Avenue on the campus of the TU Dortmund to these pioneers who paved the way for the networked world of today. The innovative strength and commitment of Politics, urban society, Founders and Research facilities in Dortmund have a forward-looking infrastructure that has significance beyond the local area.

A few years after the spin-off as a limited company, EUnet was absorbed into Verizon via UUNET and MCI Worldcom. Today, the telecommunications company has its headquarters in Dortmund. Verizon is headquartered in New York in the USA.

As an incubator for start-ups and a catalyst for research and development, the TZDO has turned Dortmund into a centre of digital innovation. The collaboration between science and business has driven the digital economy and created the global connections of today.More about EUnet: www.verizon.com