The endorsement will make the format more attractive to firms and the public sector

The OpenDocument Format (ODF) has taken another step forward in challenging Microsoft and other file formats, having won ISO approval.

The endorsement may make ODF more attractive to firms seeking an open standard backed by many software developers. The ODF Alliance now has over 150 members, including giants such as IBM and Sun.

ODF Alliance executive director Marino Marcich said the ISO endorsement would serve as a “springboard for adoption” and follows approval by the Oasis standards body in May last year. The ODF Alliance predicted that use of ODF in Europe is likely to grow as ISO standards are recognised by EC directives.

“This will definitely make a difference, especially among government-level customers,” said Simon Phipps, chief open-source officer at Sun. “They kept saying to me: ‘When is there going to be a standard?’ This validates ODF and the effects will ripple down into procurement where many are faced with the choice of being forced to move to new software by Microsoft, or switching to an open alternative.”

The rise of ODF has encouraged Microsoft to open up its own file-format protocols. Last November, Microsoft said that the next version of Office would be opened up to standards body Ecma.