18 February 2020 — Whether it’s hailing a ride, booking a vacation house, buying new or used goods, contracting services, or downloading music, the sharing economy is redefining traditional business models. To support data exchange and trustworthiness in this expanding market, ISO–the International Organization for Standardization–has formed Technical Committee 324. This new group is defining a broad set of global standards for the sharing economy. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the OASIS standards consortium have brought together leaders from the largest online platforms, innovative startups, technology companies, financial services providers, and nonprofits to represent American interests in this work as members of the U.S. Technical Advisory Group (TAG) to ISO/TC 324, Sharing Economy.
“We’re seeing a growing shift towards policy setting in the sharing economy. The ISO standards we’re defining now will play a key role in shaping those policies,” said Tim Hirsch of CaaStle, chair of the U.S. TAG. “Our work is going to have a profound impact across the market—on platform operators, service providers, and users.”
Focusing on five key market segments—transportation, staffing, lodging, retail, and media—ISO/TC 324 will address areas as varied as risk mitigation, asset protection, management, and resourcing. The initial phase of the work will focus on terminology and principles, and operationalizing sharing economy methodologies.
Microsoft‘s Stephanie Beers, vice chair of the U.S. TAG, observed, “The TAG has already effectively advocated for several issues important to our members. For example, we succeeded in changing ISO’s definition of the sharing economy to cover not only business-to-consumer but also business-to-business. We recognize the importance of not excluding groups that want guidance from these standards.”
“The majority of sharing economy pioneers are based in the U.S. We’re proud to have so many of these industry giants collaborating side-by-side with visionary technology and financial companies and providers of the latest platforms,” said Carol Geyer, chief development officer of OASIS. “All the U.S. TAG members should be applauded for their commitment to international collaboration, data safety, and the future of peer-to-peer computing.”
The next ISO/TC 324 plenary will be held in Saint-Denis, France, 22-24 June 2020.
Support from U.S. TAG members
“eBay, in working with the U.S. TAG, is setting consistent practices and standards for sharing at a global ecommerce level which will result in even greater connected business opportunities and unprecedented benefits for consumers.” Sanjeev Katariya, Vice President and Chief Architect, eBay AI & Platforms
“The sharing economy will change every aspect of our lives from how we do business to how we interact with each other and our environment. The FinTech4Good team is looking forward to working with other TAG members to achieve Agenda 2030 through the sharing economy.” Xiaochen Zhang, President, FinTech4Good
“Indiegogo is excited to partner with other industry leaders on this important initiative. Having international standards is key to collaborating globally, and we are excited to help progress a mutual understanding throughout the ecosystem.” Andy Yang, CEO, Indiegogo
“As the sharing economy is embraced by every demographic in the world, it is incumbent upon the sharing economy ecosystem to professionalize itself with standards that seek normalization, protections for workers and consumers, and encourage growth.” Jeremy Gottschalk, Founder and CEO, Marketplace Risk
“Trust is the bedrock of any successful partnership. Bringing together both public and private organizational experience in Sharing Economy/Collaborative eCommerce, spear-headed by ANSI and OASIS is a step in the right direction to ensure TRUST is the foundation. To ensure the future of work and the marketplace driven economy is not hijacked by business or political interests, defining these ethical and technological standards now, will help guide all participants in this burgeoning business model.” Adam Broadway, CEO, Near Me
“While sharing economy, blockchain and fintech may be new terms, they are quickly becoming the foundation for how organizations and individuals will work in the future. These are the technologies and functions we use in our Media Exchange to leverage unused cloud time, equipment and manpower for distributed productions that lower costs and improve quality.”” Joseph Maar, CEO, NECF Corporation
“Setting fair sharing economy standards will have a huge impact moving forward. Mass inequity in society has led to the proliferation of sharing economy businesses, but we as a committee need to be the voice for all stakeholders — from businesses, providers and consumers of these platforms.” Anitha Beberg, CEO, Seva Exchange
“The formation of this committee is tremendous recognition of the long-term viability of the global sharing economy. This international collaboration will be vital to the continued expansion of major sharing economy segments in emerging markets where on-demand entrepreneurs and the companies they represent require stronger protection to ensure growth, profitability, and customer satisfaction.” Tim Attia, CEO, Slice Labs
“The Gig Economy Group is pleased to participate in the working group to explore the important impact of the sharing economy on how we create a framework of engagement that works for the different stakeholders in the market with the rapid growth of the sharing economy.” Dave Toole, CEO and Chairman, The Gig Economy
Visit ISO’s website for information on U.S. TAG to ISO/TC 324.
About ANSI
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and the American quality of life by promoting, facilitating, and safeguarding the integrity of the voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system. Its membership is comprised of businesses, professional societies and trade associations, standards developers, government agencies, and consumer and labor organizations. The Institute represents and serves the diverse interests of more than 270,000 companies and organizations and 30 million professionals worldwide. ANSI is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). For more information, visit www.ansi.org.
About OASIS OASIS is one of the most respected, member-driven standards bodies in the world. It offers standards and open source projects a path to recognition in international policy and procurement. OASIS has a broad technical agenda encompassing the sharing economy, cybersecurity, privacy, cryptography, cloud computing, IoT, legal, emergency management, augmented reality, and more. OASIS members can be found in 100+ countries on virtually every continent. Major multinational companies, SMEs, government agencies, universities, research institutions, consulting groups, and individuals are represented.