Re: [xml-dev] RAND issues

[David Brownell <david-b@pacbell.net>]

Len,

>     I hate to see the W3C reduced to creating 
> only specifications for low level technologies for 
> which there are only ever a few implementations needed.

I don't think anyone thinks that's happened, or is asking
for that to happen.  (Did you leave out a "would"?)

The concern is more that W3C should focus on
technologies for which multiple implementations
are expected and desirable ... like, for example,
many "low level" technologies, and not a small
number of higher level ones!

The "only a few implementations" is a business
strategy chosen by some vendors as a way to
preclude or minimize competition.  That's not
really what standards are all about.  Even if
folk advocating patents can licence patents
separately from implementations which use it.

- Dave