March 26th, 2008
Microsoft claims Office OpenXML standard Czechmate
Microsoft thinks it has the votes to get Office OpenXML (OOXML), the format of Microsoft Office, approved as an ISO standard.
The key, it says, was a decision by the Czech Standards Institute to approve the format.
A Microsoft spokesperson wrote to ZDNet:
This represents a change in its original “NO” position last fall.
The CSI, a ‘P-member’, offer 75 comments to the original Ecma submission during the Fast Track balloting process. According to their press release after the BRM, “the standard proposal [DIS 29500]
complies with all comments” originally proposed.
Microsoft noted that 75% of all qualifying votes must be positive, including two-thirds from so-called P-members. The Czech Republic is a P-member. The original vote had 74% positives and 51% from P-members.
The P in P-member stands for “participating” and Microsoft has been accused of pushing national bodies into the ISO process as P-members in order to rig the vote in its favor.
Some 87 countries participated in the ballot and they have until March 29 to move toward Microsoft’s position or its effort will fail.
Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist for 30 years, a tech freelancer since 1983. You can follow Dana on Twitter. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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