Commerce One rejects e-marketplace standards

NEWS Despite the fact that Commerce One heads a recently launched standards body, the Global Trading Web Association, Kevin Schick, vice president of product marketing at Commerce One, told silicon.com the company had taken the decision to walk away from B2B standards because industry groups were progressing too slowly. He accused major B2B players of stifling development by refusing to cooperate with rival exchanges on the issue. "We are no closer to creating standards because companies involved in the marketplaces have traditionally been competitors and could never agree. Standardisation could take years," he warned. Commenting on current initiatives, Schick said most of them fail to realise that standardisation requires a two pronged approach - content and also exchange infrastructure. Commerce One's partner SAP is contributing to the development of the new XML search engine. The new technology should be available within six months, with an advanced version capable of searching ERP files behind firewalls available in 12 months. Andy Tanner Smith, research analyst with Frost & Sullivan, welcomed Commerce One's new strategy but warned that it should not dismiss B2B standards entirely. "The search engine strategy is quite clever. It negates the standards issue for the short term, which will inevitably become a minefield. But in the long term, if they are not seen to be pitching for standards, people will be concerned at what they are actually doing," he said. "Ariba are in pole position with their IBM and i2 alliance. I think they will concentrate on standards. I think Commerce One are trying to circumnavigate that with their search technology," he added.