The United Nations CEFACT and the Organization for the Advancement of Structural Information Standards (OASIS) today announced that they will be ready to deliver the Electronic Business XML trading standard this coming March. It was originally slated for release next summer.
The ebXML standard will establish transport, routing and trading-partner protocols for businesses looking to trade with other businesses on the Internet.
OASIS President Bill Smith, who also serves as the engineering manager for Sun Microsystems Inc.'s XML center, said he views ebXML as a necessary step in bringing small and medium-size companies into business-to-business networks.
"It's bringing the benefits of [the electronic data interchange standard] over the Web," Smith said.
Smith said ebXML would complement rather than replace EDI - still the most popular business data exchange format, according to Giga Information Group Inc. analyst Ken Vollmer.
EbXML is designed to provide a simple way for companies to find one another and conduct business over the Web, allowing those with different platforms to speak a common language.
Smith estimated that global adoption of the ebXML standard will take a year. He said he believes that UN/CEFACT's backing of ebXML will help speed the adoption. That organization was also instrumental in creating and promoting EDIFACT, an international standard for EDI.
IBM has been among the numerous companies supporting the new standard. IBM Technological Evangelist Steve Holbrook said his company's next line of Websphere business products will come out next year with full support for ebXML.
Other emerging standards in the next IBM Websphere line include: Universal Description Discovery Integration (UDDI), which will create a global phone-book-like registry for business-to-business commerce, and Web Services Description Language, which will let businesses describe themselves and the platforms on which they operate inside a UDDI directory.
"We hope this becomes as ubiquitous as a [domain name system] server," Holbrook said. "HTTP and HTML are what made the Web take off. We think these new standards will make online B2B commerce take off."
Vollmer remained skeptical that any one new standard will revolutionize the business world, noting that it will be cost-prohibitive for established companies to scuttle their existing infrastructure.
"It will be an enhancement, not a replacement," he said.
He also said translation software is blurring the lines between EDI and the variant forms of XML.
Friday, August 29, 2008
E-Commerce and Legislation: Consumer Protection and Digital Signatures
One of the significant distinctions between E-Sign and ETA is that E-Sign includes detailed consumer protection provisions not found in unified ETA. See 15 USC §7001(c). Because of the exemption to preemption mentioned above, a state adoption of the uniform version of unified ETA arguably preempts E-Sign's consumer protection provisions. The Oregon Legislature made a policy decision to adopt the consumer protection provisions of E-Sign into Oregon law. Consequently, 2001 Oregon Laws, chapter 535, section 24 contains the consumer protection provisions found in E-Sign with no substantive change. Those provisions contain certain criteria, which must be met before various statutory notice requirements can be satisfied by electronic means and preclude the use of electronic notice for actions such as termination of utility services or residential eviction.
It should be noted that unified ETA does contain more general requirements regarding the presentation of electronic records. According to section 8, if certain information is required by law to be provided, sent, or delivered in writing, an electronic record must be capable of retention by the recipient at the time of receipt to satisfy that law. Capable of retention upholstery cleaning la the ability of the recipient to print or store the electronic record. Any specific format or presentation requirements specified in a law must also be complied with in the electronic record. If any sender inhibits the ability of a recipient to store or print an electronic record, the record is not enforceable against the recipient.
In discussing "electronic signatures," one should note the important distinction between this term and "digital signatures." As mentioned, any electronic sound, symbol or process may be deemed an electronic signature international adoption requisite intent to sign is present. Digital signatures, on the other hand, are technology specific forms of electronic signatures, which offer additional advantages such as authentication and encryption. Documents executed with digital signatures provide greater assurance of the identity of the signatory and are more difficult to alter and forge.
Prior to the passage of 2001 Oregon Laws, chapter 535, Oregon had adopted an Electronic Signature Act, which thinly addressed the enforceability of electronic and digital signatures and provided an infrastructure for registering companies, which issue digital signatures (Certification Authorities). Sections 31 to 36 of 2001 Oregon Laws, chapter 535 significantly amend the Oregon Electronic upholstery cleaning kansas city Act by renaming it the "Digital Signature Act" and reconciling it with UETA. The amendment limits the Digital Signature Act's application to digital signatures only and makes appropriate reference to the newly adopted Unified ETA provisions, which govern the enforceability of electronic signatures.
It should be noted that unified ETA does contain more general requirements regarding the presentation of electronic records. According to section 8, if certain information is required by law to be provided, sent, or delivered in writing, an electronic record must be capable of retention by the recipient at the time of receipt to satisfy that law. Capable of retention upholstery cleaning la the ability of the recipient to print or store the electronic record. Any specific format or presentation requirements specified in a law must also be complied with in the electronic record. If any sender inhibits the ability of a recipient to store or print an electronic record, the record is not enforceable against the recipient.
In discussing "electronic signatures," one should note the important distinction between this term and "digital signatures." As mentioned, any electronic sound, symbol or process may be deemed an electronic signature international adoption requisite intent to sign is present. Digital signatures, on the other hand, are technology specific forms of electronic signatures, which offer additional advantages such as authentication and encryption. Documents executed with digital signatures provide greater assurance of the identity of the signatory and are more difficult to alter and forge.
Prior to the passage of 2001 Oregon Laws, chapter 535, Oregon had adopted an Electronic Signature Act, which thinly addressed the enforceability of electronic and digital signatures and provided an infrastructure for registering companies, which issue digital signatures (Certification Authorities). Sections 31 to 36 of 2001 Oregon Laws, chapter 535 significantly amend the Oregon Electronic upholstery cleaning kansas city Act by renaming it the "Digital Signature Act" and reconciling it with UETA. The amendment limits the Digital Signature Act's application to digital signatures only and makes appropriate reference to the newly adopted Unified ETA provisions, which govern the enforceability of electronic signatures.
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