The point of having standards is to create a consistent set of rules, or models, for all parties to follow. That point seems to be lost, though, on governments in many emerging markets. When it comes to technology, countries like China and India are trying to create their own patchwork of unique standards — many specifically designed to bolster domestic firms at the expense of foreign ones.
BSA’s “Lockout” report, an in-depth examination of a new wave of IT-focused trade barriers, shows that manipulating technology standards is one of a handful of ways that governments, especially in emerging markets, are trying to impede free and fair global competition. (more…)