Report from the SC34 convener Martin Bryan is stepping down (after his three year term) as convener of ISO/IEC JTC1 SC34, the place of the OOXML debacle. Says he:
This year WG1 have had another major development that has made it almost impossible to continue with our work within ISO. The influx of P members whose only interest is the fast-tracking of ECMA 376 as ISO 29500 has led to the failure of a number of key ballots.(ECMA 376 is OOXML), and
The days of open standards development are fast disappearing. Instead we are getting “standardization by corporation”, something I have been fighting against for the 20 years I have served on ISO committees.So, Microsoft is single-handedly responsible for destroying the standardization efforts of numerous engaged individuals and organizations, as well as the work in an important international standardization organization. I can't find words for the disappointment I feel. Peter Kopelman, take some responsibility for the business ethics of your company!
