Innovation and Legislation: Standardization in ... - The Bolin Group

Before defining the appropriate roles of government, it is beneficial to look at the overall risks and
rewards of government involvement.
Risks
During the conference, a US government representative asked what industry wants in terms of
government involvement, specifically asking “If Congress stays out of it, will it be best for
everybody?” Robert Noth, Manager of Engineering Standards for Deere & Company, spoke out in
favor of some legislation when necessary, but stated that US legislation is currently too US focused
and needs to be more international in scope. As a partial remedy, he encouraged government to enact
legislation that changes the mandates of relevant government organizations to creating harmony with
international standards. In addition, he cautioned legislators to base regulations on performance and
avoid micromanaging or refining the design. Above all, Noth stressed that legislation needs to allow
for flexibility to accommodate changes in the marketplace. Too often, legislation is based on market
conditions that no longer apply. Businesses are tasked with conforming to that legislation, sometimes
to the detriment of their businesses and the users it was designed to protect.
Jack Sheldon, Strategic Development Manager for IEC, expressed similar concerns, stating his belief
that legislation tends to be longer term and more difficult to change than standards. From his point
of view, standardization is much easier to deal with. Karl-Heinz Rosenbrock (Director-General of
ETSI) believes that the European Directive is a preferable approach as legislation is not always
consensus-based or practical.
Based on his experience, John Podesta, former Chief of Staff for the Clinton Administration and
currently Visiting Professor of Law at Georgetown University, identified four risks associated with
government involvement in standardization efforts:
• It can lock in obsolete technology
• Government driven standardization can be interpreted as non-tariff trade barriers
• It can reduce beneficial competition between multiple standards
• It can slow the standardization process down
Rewards
Despite these risks, Podesta and others did see benefits in the right government involvement. For
example, Podesta believes that public policy concerns need to be part of the standardization process
Innovation and Legislation: Standardization in Conflict
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