Members Approve ebXML Messaging Services 3.0 as OASIS Standard

["Pim van der Eijk" <lists@sonnenglanz.net>]

Members Approve ebXML Messaging Services 3.0 as OASIS Standard 

Axway Software, Fujitsu, NEC, Sun Microsystems, U.S. Centers for Disease
Control, and Others Collaborate on New Version of Global Standard for
Exchanging Business Messages over the Internet 

Boston, MA, USA; 16 October 2007 - OASIS, the international open standards
consortium, today announced that its members have approved ebXML Messaging
Services (ebMS) version 3.0: Part 1, Core Features as an OASIS Standard, a
status that signifies the highest level of ratification. ebMS 3.0 defines a
Web services-based method for the reliable, secure exchange of business
information. It is the latest addition to the ebXML family of specifications
that was launched as a global initiative by OASIS and the United Nations
Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) and has
been adopted worldwide. 

"This specification is the first major revision of ebMS since version 2.0
was approved as an OASIS Standard in April 2002 - and subsequently as an ISO
Standard in March 2004," said Patrick Gannon, president and CEO of OASIS.
"It ensures ebXML's continuing relevancy and achieves compatibility with Web
services specifications developed after ebMS 2.0, including SOAP 1.2 , as
well as the WS-Security, WS-Reliability, and WS-ReliableMessaging OASIS
Standards." 

"It has become critical for all partners - in particular small and medium
size enterprises- of a supply chain to be able to handle differences in
message flow capacity, intermittent connectivity, lack of static IP
addresses, and firewall restrictions. ebMS 3.0 was designed to address all
these requirements," explained Ian Jones of British Telecommunications plc,
chair of the OASIS ebMS Technical Committee. "We've succeeded in extending
the existing enveloping technique that permits messages to contain payloads
of any format type - not just XML, to a more flexible Web service framework.
This versatility ensures legacy electronic business systems that use
traditional syntaxes, such as EDI, ASC X12, or HL7, can leverage the
advantages of the ebMS infrastructure along with systems based on emerging
technologies." 

ebMS is designed to be used either with or without any of the other ebXML
standards, including ebXML Business Process Specification Schema (BPSS)
2.0.4 and a forthcoming version of ebXML Collaboration Protocol Profile and
Agreement (CPP/A). By design, ebMS 3.0 also fully supports composition with
other SOAP-based Web services specifications. ebMS was developed under the
Royalty-Free on Limited Terms Mode of the OASIS Intellectual Property Rights
Policy. Axway, Fujitsu Computer Systems, and NEC all verified successful use
of ebMS 3.0, in accordance with eligibility requirements for all OASIS
Standards. 

The OASIS ebMS Technical Committee continues work on Part 2 of ebMS 3.0 that
will provide functional extensions to the ebMS 3.0 Core. Participation in
the Technical Committee remains open to all companies, non-profit groups,
governments, academic institutions, and individuals. Archives of the work
are accessible to both members and non-members, and OASIS offers a mechanism
for public comment. OASIS hosts an XML.org Focus Area for ebXML,
http://ebxml.xml.org, which serves as the official community gathering place
and information resource for the standards. 

Support for ebMS 

Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) 
"AIAG supports ebMS 3.0 because it enables trading partners to pull for
incoming messages, which is very beneficial for smaller companies that do
not have static Internet IP addresses or do not want to keep their systems
turned on all the time. The automotive industry has invested in ebXML and in
Web services capabilities; ebMS 3.0 should facilitate interoperable data
exchange using both transport mechanisms," said Pat Snack, General Motors
Executive Loan, AIAG. 

Axway 
"Many global communities use ebXML to reliably transport electronic business
messages over the Internet. The ebXML version 3.0 standards process has
mainly focused on improving the messaging standard by adding new features
found in recent WS-* standards and allowing smaller customers to engage in
ebXML business-quality messaging without needing a 24-by-7 Web server. We
feel these enhancements will increase its adoption and are pleased to have
participated in the endeavor," said Dave Bennett, CTO at Axway. 

Fujitsu 
"This new version of ebMS will address a broader array of users including
SMEs with limited connectivity and little IT management resources. The
adoption of Web services standards for security and reliability will
facilitate implementations over existing platforms. We believe ebMS 3.0 will
become an effective and versatile B2B complement to enterprise systems and
SOA deployments," said Yasushi Ishida, Exective Architect of Software Unit,
Fujitsu Limited. 

Health Level Seven (HL7) 
"We have completed committee level balloting on a new release of the HL7
ebXML Transport Specification (normative track) which is based on ebMS 3.0
and expect to proceed to membership ballot in Jan 2008. ebMS 3.0 provides an
excellent platform for all forms of health information content exchange
including documents, SOA, and messages with the diversity of stakeholders in
the health care community," said Paul Knapp of Continovation Services Inc.,
HL7 Implementable Technology Specifications SIG Co-Chair. 

Additional information: 
OASIS ebMS Technical Committee 
http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/ebxml-msg 

ebXML XML.org 
http://ebxml.xml.org 

About OASIS: 
OASIS (Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information
Standards), drives the development, convergence, and adoption of open
standards for the global information society. A not-for-profit consortium,
OASIS advances standards for SOA, security, Web services, documents,
e-commerce, government and law, localisation, supply chains, XML processing,
and other areas of need identified by its members. OASIS open standards
offer the potential to lower cost, stimulate innovation, grow global
markets, and protect the right of free choice of technology. The consortium
has more than 5,000 participants representing over 600 organizations and
individual members in 100 countries. http://www.oasis-open.org 

Press contact: 
Carol Geyer 
OASIS Director of Communications 
carol.geyer@oasis-open.org 
+1.978.667.5115 x209 (office) 
+1.941.284.0403 (mobile)