As someone who cut his teeth in tech on industry rivalries going back to Macintosh versus Windows and the “PDL wars” between Adobe Postscript and HP PCL, I find my attention in the mobile printing space shifts to the (assumed on my part) rivalry between iOS and Android, and differences there, and the perception (again, mine) that Mopria is all about Android. In addition to offering the following guest post, HP Fellow and VP LaserJet Chief Technologist Phil McCoog, Phil McCoog, one of the key founders of the Mopria alliance, offered perspective. He notes that much Apple’s mobile printing solution shares underlying technologies with Mopria, a fact that can be tracked to the long-term work of the famed cross-industry “Printer Working Group” (PWG). Many of the same parties involved in Mopria today had been cooperating on developing standards in that group for 10 years or more, with Apple representatives chairing the committee during much of that time. So while “fierce rivalries” remain among all the participants in the market and in head-to-head product face-offs, the standards work removes significant cases of the players being “bogged down by unvaluable innovation,” in the words of McCoog.
What follows are more of McCoog's thoughts on standards and their importance for imaging and printing, in the form of a guest post, which I am very honored to include as part of my first “Observations” in its second decade.
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“The Case for Standards” Blog Post
By Phillip McCoog
HP Fellow and VP LaserJet Chief Technologist, and a founding leader for the Mopria Alliance
How frustrating was it when you bought that new cell phone,
and then had to buy a whole new set of chargers? Or when your new computer uses
an operating system version that you’re not used to? It seems like every time
you buy a new printer or scanner, there are whole new batches of software
downloads required.
Whether it’s a new cell phone or a new coffee maker, we’re
all always learning to use a new “thing.” It’s time intensive and, frankly,
annoying. And, with more and more internet connected products – Gartner is
predicting that the Internet of Things install base will grow to 26 billion
units by 2020[1]
– these learning curves are only getting greater.
The thing is – product inconsistencies we face each day as
consumers could have been solved if, at the right time, the right people had decided
to do something about it. How? Through the creation and adoption of an industry
standard.
At the most basic level, industry standards can be defined
as generally accepted requirements outlined and followed by the members of an
industry. Industry standards allow us to connect to the internet, ensure our
computers and phones can interact with one another despite their brand, and
make sure that – no matter if your TV is made by Samsung or LG – it can still
receive and interpret broadcast signals so that you can watch your favorite
show at night.
Standards help to drive broad adoption across industries,
creating a consistent experience for end users. Therefore, when done right, industry standards can greatly
improve the lives of consumers, and allow for a more stable market environment (baseline
technology foundation) for industries, which often leads to greater innovation.
Take the example of the bar code, which is today
ubiquitously used to encode product and personal data. In the early 1970s
supermarkets saw the benefits of easily identifying and checking stock, and
developed electronic tracking systems. But only when a common standard was
developed did the barcode take off. Today the barcode is no longer only used by
supermarkets; it appears on mobile phones, access cards, airline boarding
passes and much more. The common standard was able to focus creativity to
generate new and unexpected applications that add value.
Another great example of industry standards done right is
the MP3 file. The development of the MP3 allowed music to break free of
physical recording devices like CDs and allowed for the development of an
entirely new (and consumer-friendly) distribution process for music, and the
invention of new technology such as the iPod, ringtones, computer game
soundtracks, online radio podcasts and more.
However, creating an industry standard is a tricky business,
and when done too soon (or even worse, too late) they often fail. As stated by
the World Standards Cooperation, “Developing the right standards at the right
time becomes increasingly difficult…In the case of technologies that require
that different components to come together to connect, exchange information
efficiently and provide a unified set of services, it is important that
standardization happens early. However,
when standardization happens too early, it may impede the innovation process.”[2] When the industry has
failed to develop standards on its own, sometimes regulators step in –
something that would have been made unnecessary by the success of a voluntarily
standard.
For example, a 2009 regulatory action by the European
Commission resulted in the specification of a common external power
supply (EPS), otherwise known as a charger, for use
with data-enabled mobile phones sold in the European Union.
Although compliance is voluntary, a majority of the world's largest mobile
phone manufacturers have been compelled to make their applicable mobile phones
compatible with Europe's common External Power Supply, making everyone’s lives
easier.
Another possible outcome of a lack of an early industry
standard is intense competition between similar technologies. This process is referred
to as a “standards war.” Some well-known examples include VHS vs. Betamax,
Explorer vs. Netscape, HD DVD vs. Blu-ray, and the list could go on.
We’ve all felt the pain caused by a lack of standards. New
technologies should improve and simplify our lives – not cause additional
headaches. The Internet of Things (IoT) for example is one of the next hurdles
in technology development that require different manufacturers products and components
to work together to connect and exchange information efficiently. For example,
companies like Nest are developing internet connected thermostats & smoke
detectors for the home that can be controlled via an application on your smart mobile.
Currently, this process is great for consumers, as they only have a small
number of devices to control. But as the industry grows, and more and more
Internet-enabled products are developed, this will change.
Without a set industry standard to tie all of these devices
together seamlessly – regardless of brand – users could end up with 100 separate
apps to control the 100 different Internet-connected devices in their home. I
think we can all agree that is not a sustainable model, and would not encourage
consumer adoption or collective industry innovation. There are already several
start-ups, big companies and consortiums creating IoT standards with the
intention of solving this problem. The
unintended consequence may be yet another standards war.
By contrast, the printing industry is in alignment on
standards for mobile printing. Being
able to print from your mobile device to a printer at home and at work is an
example of a customer experience that is being simplified with the adoption of standards. The Mopria Alliance is making it seamless to
connect to any certified printer, regardless of brand.
Industry standards benefit everyone – driving efficiency,
adoption and – ultimately – industry-wide innovation. Consider how much easier
our lives would be if mobile device manufacturers had decided to make a
standard charger at the beginning of the mobile age. Let’s push all industries
to embrace opportunities to create a more intuitive world.
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