[odf-discuss] Duty of governments to specify OpenDocument as a procurement standard

[marbux]

There has been a fair amount of public speculation that OpenDocument
is not yet mandatory for government software procurement because it is
not yet final. Those who encounter such arguments may be interested in
what the international Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade has to
say on the subject:

"Where technical regulations are required and relevant international
standards exist **or their completion is imminent,*** Members shall
use them, or the relevant parts of them, as a basis for their
technical regulations except when such international standards or
relevant parts would be an ineffective or inappropriate means for the
fulfilment [sic] of the legitimate objectives pursued, for instance
because of fundamental climatic or geographical factors or fundamental
technological problems."

<http://www.wto.org/english/res_e/booksp_e/analytic_index_e/tbt_01_e.htm#article2>
(emphasis added).

Since the current status of ISO adoption is at the 60% stage, approved
but for clean-up details, it might be fairly argued that they
specification of ODF in government tenders is in fact now mandatory
unless to do so would pose "fundamental" technological problems. The
need to maintain compatibility with existing software and legacy
documents would not, in my opinion, qualify, since it would continue
an "unnecessary obstacle to trade." In other words, the very purpose
of the relevant free trade agreements would be frustrated were "the
way we always did it before" allowed to compel the continuation of
procurement tenders that discriminate among vendors' products. Here is
the wisdom of Article VI of the Agreement on Government Procurement on
the subject:

"Technical specifications laying down the characteristics of the
products or services to be procured, such as quality, performance,
safety and dimensions, symbols, terminology, packaging, marking and
labelling, or the processes and methods for their production and
requirements relating to conformity assessment procedures prescribed
by procuring entities, ***shall not be prepared, adopted or applied***
with a view to, or ***with the effect of, creating unnecessary
obstacles to international trade."***

<http://www.wto.org/english/res_e/booksp_e/analytic_index_e/gpa_02_e.htm#article6>
(emphasis added).

Stimulating competition by **removing** barriers to trade is the very
purpose of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade and the
Agreement on Government Procurement. I strongly doubt that any court
would interpret them as a justification for prolonging the same
barriers to trade they were designed to overcome.

So in summary, there is a strong argument that OpenDocument is now
mandatory in government procurement, notwithstanding that ISO has yet
to consider the final tweaks. It can fairly be said that ISO's
adoption of the OpenDocument standard is "imminent."

Best regards,

Marbux