Examining the IEEE standards process

I write about LAN standards work in this newsletter from time to time, and I probably look at it more frequently than some other publications. So I read with great interest this week’s feature in Network World called “Is the IEEE standards process broken?”

The article seems to be inspired by projects that recently went awry, like the 802.20 group working on a Mobile Broadband Wireless Access standard, which was disbanded after nearly four years and then reformed a few months ago. And then there is 802.11n, the specification for high-speed wireless LANs that has had widely reported struggles.

You might argue that the problems reside in the wireless area specifically. But Ethernet inventor Bob Metcalfe argues in the article that these kinds of battles have been going on for a long time. He recalled the stalemate among three different LAN approaches that led to three different standards – one for Ethernet, one for Token Ring and one for Token Bus.

Is it different now? The article says yes. There are many more people involved in standards efforts than ever before, and the system really isn’t set up to handle that. With so many involved, standards take longer to form.

I haven’t really seen this phenomenon in LAN standards recently. Sure, there are some differences of opinion – but not to the point of paralysis that the article describes. Maybe the wired LAN vendors have more of a sense of banding together for the common good than wireless vendors. Or maybe it’s something else.

What do you think? Got any stories to share about how the standards process works – or doesn’t? Let me know.