Future of Redmond's Open XML format 'unclear', says Gartner

The International Organisation for Standardisation's recent approval of the OpenDocument format is a major blow to Microsoft, according to Gartner.

The analyst firm said that the ISO's unanimous approval of ISO/IEC 26300 earlier this month effectively elevates the Oasis OpenDocument format to the official XML document format.

It is now unlikely that the ISO will adopt Microsoft's Open XML document format.

"This validates the Oasis technical committee's nearly four-year effort (led by Sun Microsystems, and including Adobe Systems, IBM and Textuality) to develop an XML representation for document formats such as text files and spreadsheets," noted a Gartner analysis written by Rita Knox and Michael Silver.

"From the outset, we predicted that Microsoft would face greater competition if Oasis succeeded."

The study added that global government agencies are increasingly seeking document format compatibility among users who don't have access to common applications, particularly Microsoft Office applications.

According to Gartner, ODF opens up opportunities for new products including integrated "composite" documents that mix text, graphics or spreadsheet elements, without the need for viewers to shift between applications.

Applications and suites that support ODF include Google's Writely, IBM's Workplace and Sun's OpenOffice and StarOffice.

"The future of Microsoft's proposed Open XML format is unclear. Microsoft only submitted this format for European Computer Manufacturers Association [ECMA] approval in late 2005, after Massachusetts mandated that agencies use ODF for office productivity documents," the Gartner report stated.

"Until the Massachusetts decision, Microsoft seemed to ignore growing support for ODF. Microsoft plans to submit its XML format to ISO after ECMA approval. But ISO will not approve multiple XML document formats."

Gartner advised companies to recognise that they will eventually be saving office product data in an XML-based format. Users that need ODF support today, or need to comply with ISO standards, are urged to explore applications that support ODF.

However, the analyst went on to warn that, while these applications may be cheaper to acquire, the migration will be expensive and will involve compatibility issues when exchanging documents with Microsoft Office users.

Firms that need compatibility with Microsoft Office formats, or cannot cost justify a migration, are advised by Gartner to lobby Microsoft to support ODF and look for plug-ins that allow them to open and save ODF files from within Microsoft applications.