Final Draft Version 3: 05 March 2000

ebXML Initiative� to Deliver Its Initial XML Interoperability Specifications in May 2000

Orlando, FL, USA February 2000

The ebXML Initiative� to Create a Single Global XML Framework Solution, a joint effort of the United Nation/CEFACT and OASIS, continued to attract the participation of major industry standards organizations and companies from around the world at its second working meeting in Orlando, FL, USA.

 

�ebXML may very well prove to be a major event of the new millennium, revolutionizing how business transactions are tracked, affecting� worldwide impacts, removing paper from the process, and by empowering people to create whole new work models,� said David RR Webber, North American Chair of the XML/EDI Group. Others expressed the belief that the ebXML Initiative is the only chance this decade to establish an international electronic commerce standard.

 

Participants representing 14 countries, 83 companies, government agencies and several national and international standards organizations extended to nearly 500 by virtual participation. Lending their knowledge and expertise to the ebXML Initiative� are representatives from IBM, Sun Microsystems, Commerce One, Dun & Bradstreet, Oracle, Visa International, General Motors joined with individuals representing Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and United Kingdom. A full listing of countries, companies and organizations represented is at the end of this document.

 

The energy and enthusiasm of the on-site participants was evident in all eight Project Teams� efforts. Each project team committed to an aggressive schedule to deliver the components of the ebXML� framework. Specification components of the ebXML� Framework to be developed between the Orlando meeting and submitted for approval at the next meeting to be held in Brussels include the following:

 

�        ebXML Requirements Specification

�        ebXML Conceptual Architecture Specification

�        ebXML Message Structure and Headers Specification

�        ebXML Core Components Specification

 

The work of the ebXML project teams is carried out via extensive listserv discussions and regular teleconferences between each face-to-face meeting. Proposed specifications will be submitted for public comment via the ebXML listserv and the ebXML web site. Participation is open to anyone wishing to contribute to this critical and exciting initiative. Interested organizations and individuals can learn more about the effort, including details on how to get involved, by visiting the ebXML Initiative� web site at� http://www.ebxml.org.

 

The next meeting is scheduled for 8-12 May 2000, in Brussels, Belgium. Subsequent meetings are scheduled for 7-11 August in the United States and 6-11 November in Tokyo, Japan. Details for the Brussels meeting are now available at the ebXML web site.

 

About ebXML
ebXML (www.ebXML.org) is an International Initiative established by UN/CEFACT and OASIS with a mandate to undertake a 15-18 month program of work to research and identify the technical basis upon which the global implementation of XML (Extensible Markup Language) can be standardized. The goal is to provide an open technical specification to enable XML to be utilized in a consistent and uniform manner for the exchange of electronic business data in application-to-application, application-to-person and person-to-application environments.

 

About UN/CEFACT
UN/CEFACT (www.uncefact.org) is the United Nations body whose mandate covers worldwide policy and technical development in the area of trade facilitation and electronic business. Headquartered in Geneva, it has developed and promoted many tools for the facilitation of global business processes including UN/EDIFACT, the international EDI standard. Its current work programme includes such topics as Simpl-edi and Object Oriented EDI and it strongly supports the development and implementation of open, interoperable global standards and specifications for electronic business.

 

About OASIS
OASIS (http://www.oasis-open.org) is a non-profit, international consortium dedicated solely to product-independent data and content interchange. Focusing on product interoperability, OASIS embraces the complete spectrum of structured information standards including XML, SGML and CGM. OASIS sponsors include Adobe Systems, Aerospatiale, AND-USA, Arbortext, Bentley Systems, Boeing, Chrystal Software, Cohesia, Commerce One, CommerceNet, Corel, DataChannel, DMSi, Documentum, Dun & Bradstreet, eCredit.com,Enigma, Excelergy, Extricity Software, GCA, IBM, InformIT, Informix, InterCAP, Interleaf, Interwoven, ISOGEN, ITEDO, JetForm, Keyfile, Larson Software, Microsoft, NextPage, NII Enterprise Promotion Association, NIST, Object Design, Object Management Group (OMG), Open Applications Group, Oracle, ProNet Technology Partners, Reed Technology, Reuters, Sabre, Sequoia Software, SoftQuad, Software AG, STEP, Sun Microsystems, Synthbank, System Development, Wavo, Xerox, XMLSolutions and XyEnterprise.

For More Information Contact:

Carol Geyer, 
Program Manager, OASIS, 
+1.412.963.1479, 
[email protected] 

or 

Hans Hansell, 
Head UN/CEFACT Secretariat, 
+41 22 917 2457 
[email protected]

ebXML February 2000 Orlando Meeting Participants:

Countries Represented:

Australia Austria Belgium Canada Denmark Finland France Germany Japan Netherlands Spain Switzerland United Kingdom United States

Companies & Organizations Represented:

ACORD Corp Air Transport Association of America Apacs BASDA Ltd. BizID, Inc. Bowstreet Software, Inc. British Telecommunications Plc. (BT) BT UK Networks Systems Engineering Burns e-Commerce Solutions Codan Insurance Columbine JDS Comit Financial Systems Commerce One, Inc. CommerceNet CompTia Cyntercon, Inc. Danish Bankers Association Data Interchange Standards Association Data Interchange Standards Association (DISA) DataAccess Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation Documentum Drummond Group Dun & Bradstreet Dun & Bradstreet EAN Intl. EBES: Secretariat of the European Board for EDI Standardization ecentre ecom2ecom, Inc. EDI Master OY Edifecs Commerce Electronic Commerce Connection, Inc. Electronic Trade Services, Ltd. enigma e-Phase Software Solutions, Inc eProcessSolutions Extricity Software FORESIGHT Corp. GEIS General Motors Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft (GDV) Group 8760 H.O.Systems Head of SDSC Division, CSTB Hewlett-Packard I-2 Technologies IETF/Internet Open Trading Protocol JIPDEC, Japan Information Processing Development Center Kraft Foods, Inc. Logistics Management Institute LTV Steel MMI-AerolinkEC NACHA NCR NEC Corporation Netfish Technologies NIST Northwest Airlines NTT Amerika, Inc. Object Management Group (OMG) Open Applications Group, Inc. Oracle Corporation POLARIS U.K. Ltd. Rachel Foerster & Associates RosettaNet S.W.I.F.T. Sabre Siemens AG EL LP SPS Commerce State Farm Insurance Companies Sterling Commerce (S) Pte Ltd The Boeing Company TIE International BV Tradegate ECA UCC Inc. University of Vienna - Institute of Applied Computer Science University of Vienna - Institute of Applied Computer Science UPC University Politics of Spain Visa International Vitria Technology Worldspan XML Global XMLSolutions