On 22 May 2008 the South African Bureau of Standards appealed the process by which the International Standards Organisation adopted OOXML. Andrew Ren blogs on it here and in the news here. The participation of the Foundation in the local OOXML process, and consequent media campaign had already profiled the Foundation in the media to speak on the appeal.

Once SABS had sent the letter the Foundation was able to both voice its support for the appeal and to place the appeal in context for the press.

Andrew Rens was also interviewed by journalists from three separate publications (ITWEB, Tectonic, Financial Mail). He explained that the reasons for the appeal lay in the flawed processes adopted in the fast tracking of OOXML. Andrew was able to point to the Microsoft announcement highlighting that it will not be compliant with OOXML until an unspecified date in the future but will support ODF from 2009 to suggest that coupled with the appeal, it would be best if OOXML be withdrawn. News of the appeal spread quickly around the world and Brazil, India and Denmark followed South Africa’s lead and also appealed.

From 27-28 May we participated in a workshop on alternative publishing models, held under the auspices of the National Book Trust of Uganda. The workshop was part of the PALM Africa project and we were able to provide training, and consult with participants on the strategic use of Creative Commons licensed material in emerging business models.