Non-standards can lead to standards. AMD's Mantle graphics API, for example, was donated to the GLnext effort, which was then renamed Vulkan. If not for this ki

Non-standards can lead to standards. AMD's Mantle graphics API, for example, was donated to the GLnext effort, which was then renamed Vulkan. If not for this kick start, GLnext would probably still be figuring out a decent API design. Companies need to have the prerogative to do their own thing for a while, because it can lead to better standards. >I think you absolutely do have to coerce a standard if one does not already exist. I think I actually had this idea recently, with regard to print cartridges. The idea is that the government would mandate inkjet printers to adopt an open standard for print cartridges, but the law would expire after a number of years. The idea is that once it's established, no company is going to be able to get out of it without damaging their position in the market, but genuine innovation is allowed to appeal to consumers on its own merits, weighed against the downside of divergence from an established standard.