Big names back new XML-based financial standard

Maria Trombly   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other SOA & Web Services Stories  

Sign up to receive Security Resource Alerts

April 07, 2000 (Computerworld) -- Some of the world's top financial institutions have formed a consortium to promote a new, XML-based standard for exchanging financial data over the Internet.
The group, the XBRL Project Committee, expects to launch the standard by July 1, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) announced yesterday.
The standard, Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), is also backed by big-name financial service companies such as Standard & Poor's, Arthur Andersen LLP, Deloitte & Touche LLP, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Ernst & Young LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
In addition, some of the biggest names in the computer industry have lined up behind XBRL, including IBM, SAP AG, Microsoft Corp. and Oracle Corp. Financial reporting companies such as EDGAR Online Inc. and Reuters Group LP, as well as the International Accounting Standards Committee, are also backing the proposed standard.
The standard will be released in stages. The first release, scheduled for July, will cover specifications for publishing companies' financial statements in XBRL, said Mike Willis, chairman of the XBRL steering committee and a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Other specifications, which will cover additional types of business reports — such as regulatory reports including Securities and Exchange Commission EDGAR files, tax filings and business event reports such as press releases — will be issued within the next 18 to 24 months, he said.
Willis said that because these specifications are simply electronic dictionaries for the XML standards that are already used in a great number of software applications, they will be simple to install and use.
"We have vendors such as SAP who are already working to integrate XBRL directly into their software, so when their customers want to run their financial statements, XBRL is an option," said Christy Reichhelm, an enterprise resource planning industry manager at Microsoft and co-chair of the public relations and communications working group for XBRL.
"This will be a new feature in these software packages, so some type of software upgrade will be gone through," she added. "But it would be minor."
XBRL will be a free specification that uses accepted financial reporting standards and practices to exchange financial statements across all software and technologies, including the Internet, the AICPA said.
"XBRL . . . greatly benefits all users of financial information," said Robert Elliot, chairman of the AICPA, in the statement released yesterday. "XBRL solves two significant problems for users and preparers of financial statements by providing efficient preparation and reliable extraction of financial data across all technology formats, including the Internet."

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"I've loved Firefox since version 0.93. It was so much better than Internet Explorer and the other alternatives that I..." Read more... "This pilot fish works for a company that supplies software to automobile dealerships. But one afternoon, the connections to four..." Read more... Read more Internet posts or See all Blogs

Mozilla launches Firefox 3.0 RC1 early Microsoft: Don't misunderstand UAC, other Vista features HP confirms XP SP3 endless reboot snafu, promises patch More top stories...

Microsoft pulls Windows Home Server backup feature Yahoo tells Icahn that its own board knows best Tools circulate that crack Debian, Ubuntu keys

Shuttle Columbia's hard drive data recovered from crash site Specialists have retrieved about 99% of the data on a disk drive on board the crashed space shuttle Columbia. Don't miss the photographs of the recovered drive. The top 15 vaporware products of all time These big ideas were supposed to revolutionize technology, but they never actually appeared. In a few cases, you'll be glad they didn't. Opinion: Malware vs. anti-malware, 20 years into the fray Nearly 20 years after the first Internet worm, Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols takes stock of the malware/anti-malware landscape and spotlights how the two sides are approaching the battle. Leopard at six months: Does it live up to the early hype? Though some thought it was released too soon, Mac OS X 10.5 has matured into a solid operating system, says reviewer Michael DeAgonia. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland SecurityAsk a Premier 100 IT LeaderBlackBerry Legal BattleData Security BreachesElectronic VotingFirefoxH-1B VisasHP's Boardroom ScandalHandheld DevicesHurricane Katrina AftermathMicrosoft Legal IssuesMicrosoft's VistaOpen SourceRFID TechnologySCO's Linux FightSarbanes-Oxley ActSpamVoice Over IPWi-FiWindows Meta File VulnerabilityWindows XP Service Pack 2 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders2006 Salary Survey2007 Best Places to Work in IT2007 IT Forecast2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders40 Years of ComputerworldASPs, Take TwoBest Places to Work in IT 2003Best Places to Work in IT 2004Best Places to Work in IT 2005Best Places to Work in IT 2006Business Intelligence Home RunsBusiness Intelligence: Smarter BIBusiness Intelligence: The Future of BICRM Goes VerticalCRM: Sober CRMCareer Planning Guide 2005Careers: IT Profession 2010Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005Data Management: Mining for GemsData Management: Taming Data ChaosDevelopment: Hard-Workin' Web SitesDevelopment: New Tools New ChoicesDevelopment: The New World of Application DevelopmentDevelopment: The Web Services TsunamiDevelopment: Web Services HurdlesDisaster Recovery: Preparing for the WorstE-commerce Grows UpE-mail/Groupware: Big DecisionsFaces of Mobile ITForecast 2006Global MobileHardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple ChallengesHardware: On-Demand Un-HypedHardware: The Shape of Things to ComeHorizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge TechnologiesIT Management: Guide to Managing VendorsIT Management: Navigating Global ITIT Management: Recovery AheadIT Management: The Future of ITIT Management: The Resourceful Project ManagerInnovative Technology Awards 2004Management: Reinventing ITMicrosoft in TransitionMobile/Wireless Leaders and LaggardsMobile/Wireless: The Untethered WorkerMobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge CostsNetwork Management: Taking ControlNetworking: Turbulence Ahead!Networking: VoIP Goes MainstreamOperating Systems: In the Slow LaneOperating Systems: Linux Goes GlobalOperating Systems: Should You Nix Unix?Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's GuideOutsourcing: Outsourcing DangersPremier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in ClassPremier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in ClassROI: Do the Math!Salary Survey 2003Salary Survey 2004Salary Survey 2005Security Action PlanSecurity: Compliance HeadachesSecurity: Proactive SecuritySecurity: Risk and RewardSecurity: Tips From Security ProsSouped-up SecurityStorage: Battling ComplexityStorage: Cheap & Secure Data StoresStorage: Stretching Your Storage DollarsStorage: The Lean Storage MachineStorage: The New Rules of StorageStorage: The Ultimate Backup GuideSupply Chain: Missing LinksSupply Chain: RFID Reality CheckThe Business of SecurityWeb 2.0 SecurityWireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Enterprise-Class Security Zone Enterprise Solutions Zone The File Data Management Zone Grid Computing on Windows Zone Security Management Zone ITIL Best Practices Zone The SAS Zone Storage Virtualization Zone The Data Center Management Zone See your link here

Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Download this webcast, free, compliments of Sterling Commerce Go to the webcast  Virtualization Everywhere Download this white paper, free, compliments of Citrix. (Source: Citrix) Adoption of virtualization is concentrated among large enterprises, while adoption by mid-sized companies has been much slower. For these companies, the cost and complexity of server virtualization solutions has been a barrier. In this paper, we'll discuss how Citrix XenServer" provides simple, economical server virtualization for any size company. Download now! Download this white paper  Computerworld Report : Smart Storage Download this Computerworld report, free for a limited time, compliments of HP. (Source: Computerworld) Faced with growing demands, immature tools and a confusing array of technologies, IT decision-makers have to make some strategic choices. Learn how to avoid the pitfalls in this Computerworld report, a $49.95 value, available free for a limited time, compliments of HP. Download this executive briefing  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Securing Financial Services Beyond the Perimeter Intercept Spam & Viruses With MessageLabs Meeting PCI Compliance with SonicWALL Global Management System View more whitepapers

• Mozilla launches Firefox 3.0 RC1 early
• Microsoft: Don't misunderstand UAC, other Vista features
• HP confirms XP SP3 endless reboot snafu, promises patch
• More top stories 

Detect, identify, and locate RF interference in 802.11 WLANs. AnalyzeAir software provides IT network professionals with the vision they need into the hidden world of RF, providing them with the ability to see the spectrum in a visible and intelligible format. AnalyzeAir software lets you see, monitor, analyze, and manage all the RF sources and wireless devices that influence your Wi-Fi network's performance and security, even if those devices are unauthorized or transient. AnalyzeAir Trial Software v3.1 highlights the features found in AnalyzeAir Software using a set of saved spectrum files. Replay the data and experience the visibility that AnalyzeAir Wi-Fi Spectrum Analyzer provides. Note: The trial software is limited to a player version only. It does not communicate with an AnalyzeAir PC card so it does not collect actual spectrum data. Register for this trial now.



Try Fluke Networks' EtherScope Analyzer on your network FREE Quickly solve the wide range of problems you encounter - 10, 100 and Gigabit, twisted pair and optical fiber, LAN or wireless LAN. The EtherScope Analyzer combines the essential tools you need to monitor network traffic and switch interfaces, discover devices, networks, VLANs, access points, mobile clients and more. See the power of this portable network analyzer on your network. Request free trial now *Terms and conditions: Evaluation units are available only for a limited time and will be scheduled on a first-come first-served basis. Not available in all geographies. Limited quantities available; customers requesting evaluation units may be waitlisted for the next available unit. It will be at the discretion of Fluke Networks to accept or decline requests for this free evaluation.