XBRL International constitutes and names members of its Standards Board, in a major step to strengthen XBRL technical output
New York, 26 May – XBRL International Inc. announced today that it had constituted its Standards Board (XSB), a body established to strengthen the quality of its technical materials and accelerate adoption of the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) around the world.
Michael Ohata of Microsoft Corporation has been appointed as the founding chair of the Board. Other members are Gianluca Garbellotto (DynAccSys, USA), David vun Kannon (PricewaterhouseCoopers, USA), Marc van Hilvoorde (KPMG, Netherlands), John Turner (Corefiling, UK), Ray Lam (JustSystems, US/Japan). The Board will take over from an interim board which was set up in April, when XBRL announced its intention to create the XSB.
The consortium announcement emphasised that the creation of the Board did not indicate any change in the basic XBRL specification and related material. The fact the Standards Board will add to the stability of XBRL is one of the key criteria for its success.
The decision to set up the Board follows a review by the XBRL International Steering Committee (ISC) of the process by which the XBRL International consortium produces its technical material, which includes requirements statements, specifications, technical guidance, and test materials to help software developers. This coincides with moves in a number of countries to adopt XBRL, an electronic language which offers major benefits for the creation, communication and analysis of financial and other business reports.
Tasks of the Board, which will be accountable to the ISC, include:
- Increasing uniformly the quality, consistency and stability of XBRL International technical material.
- Raising the level of openness and formality of the XBRL International standards setting process.
- Managing the standards setting process more actively, resulting in improved interoperability which will accelerate adoption of XBRL.
Immediate tasks for the Standards Board include finalising a number of specific projects, such as XBRL support for calculations and report validation using formulae. It will direct the development of technical training and explanatory materials that foster adoption. Members of the Board include technical architecture and business reporting management experts, and members with experience in project and program management.
About XBRL
XBRL enables computer-readable tags to be applied to individual items of data in business reports, transforming them from simple blocks of text into information which can be understood and processed automatically by computer software. It offers cost savings, greater efficiency and improved accuracy to all those involved in preparing, analysing or communicating business information.
It can be used to express a wide range of reports and disclosures including financial statements, internal management information, regulatory returns, statistical reports, and credit filings.
The language is being developed and promoted by an international non-profit consortium of some 400 major companies, organisations and government agencies. Members cover all segments of the business supply chain.
XBRL is an open standard, free of licence fees.
More information, including the full text of the announcement of the XBRL International Standards Board, can be found on the XBRL website at www.xbrl.org.
Contact:
Tracey Tarinelli
XBRL International, Inc.
1-201.938.3788
___________