> Government should just require open communication protocols/file formats, if a competitor is willing to host the same data at cost.
Well, that's what happened with the "Office Open XML" standard, which has been a catastrophe. Microsoft perfectly handled every country to have their ISO standard pass. Even though it was in violation of ISO requirements, which many countries voiced. Those complaints "somehow" disappeared. The fact that at ISO you're not allowed to divulge who is paid by which company might be related. Or maybe not. Either way, IMO, the conclusion is that you can't delegate democratic functions to a non-democratic organization.
But I wholeheartedly agree with you on the principle. Interoperability brings innovation and competition. Not lock-ins/walled gardens. And interoperability requires standards not ""technical specification"" which is the new slang for oligopoly.
Well, that's what happened with the "Office Open XML" standard, which has been a catastrophe. Microsoft perfectly handled every country to have their ISO standard pass. Even though it was in violation of ISO requirements, which many countries voiced. Those complaints "somehow" disappeared. The fact that at ISO you're not allowed to divulge who is paid by which company might be related. Or maybe not. Either way, IMO, the conclusion is that you can't delegate democratic functions to a non-democratic organization.
But I wholeheartedly agree with you on the principle. Interoperability brings innovation and competition. Not lock-ins/walled gardens. And interoperability requires standards not ""technical specification"" which is the new slang for oligopoly.