Microsoft's Open XML under scrutiny on its way to ISO approval

Computerworld - Microsoft Corp.'s Office Open XML document format, its progress unimpeded so far as it speeds toward approval by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) later this year, may have hit its first bump on the road.

Nineteen countries, including some that have already adopted the alternative ISO-approved OpenDocument Format (ODF) standard, submitted comments and objections regarding Open XML, according to an official letter sent out yesterday by the ISO and viewed by Computerworld.

Stacy Leistner, director of communication for the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), which is helping the ISO manage the Open XML approval process, declined to comment on how many of the 19 submissions were "contradictions." In ISO terminology, contradictions are serious objections to ratifying Open XML. Submissions can also include more general comments.

"It's up to each country to define what constitutes a contradiction to an existing ISO standard," Leistner said. "It could be anything from changing a comma here or there, or a more technical objection."

At least one country said its letter to ISO leans toward the latter. "While Australia did not submit a formal contradiction, a number of issues were identified during our review that we believe warrant consideration," Alistair Tegart, a program manager with Standards Australia, wrote in an e-mail.

But Boston lawyer Andrew Updegrove, citing a source close to the process, said at least seven countries submitted formal objections to Open XML's approval. "All in all, not a very auspicious start for Open XML. And not one that augers well for a very fast Fast Track experience," he wrote in his ConsortiumInfo Standards blog.

Open XML, the default file format in Office 2007, was certified in December as a standard by the Ecma International body after a year-long process shepherded by Microsoft. Open XML's progress in ISO was never going to be as smooth, however. ISO approved the alternative ODF format as a standard last May.

The nations that submitted comments and objections to Open XML constitute more than half of the 30 countries in the ISO's information technology committee -- the gatekeeper that will determine whether to allow Open XML's 6,000 page proposal to get a general vote by ISO's 157 members.

Those countries include Denmark, France, Malaysia and Norway, which have all in the past year moved to adopt nonproprietary document standards such as ODF. They argue that ODF, though much less widely used than Microsoft formats, is more open and could help provide a lower-cost solution based around the free OpenOffice software for cash-strapped government agencies. Microsoft's fear is that businesses and consumers will follow suit.

Jason Matusow, senior director for intellectual property and interoperability for Microsoft, blamed IBM, which uses ODF in the latest versions of its flagship e-mail client, Lotus Notes, for whipping up opposition to Open XML. Despite appearances, he said IBM's efforts have borne little fruit.