Short instruction
Both standards implementation and standards development have tremendous technical, economic, legal, and societal implications in Europe. Technical implications include ensuring quality and safety across industries (Abdelkafi et al., 2021), ensuring interoperability and compatibility of products, components, and services in technological systems (Baron & Spulber, 2018). By doing so, standards establish the basis for the introduction of new technologies (and innovations) and ensure that products, components and services
supplied by different companies will be mutually compatible (Stroyan & Brown, 2012). Economic implications include enhancing overall competitiveness by reducing technical barriers to trade (Mangelsdorf, 2011), while enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of both export and trade within the European Single Market. Legal implications include ensuring compliance with EU regulations (e.g., European harmonized standards) (Blind & Mangelsdorf, 2016) while minimizing disputes over intellectual property through mechanisms such as FRAND or RAND licensing (Spulber, 2020). Societal implications include contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), thus ensuring that products, services, and processes support a resilient, green and digital EU Single Market (EC, 2022a).
The ILOs examples
K6.1., K6.3., K7.1., K7.3., S6.6., S7.3.
Recommended Teaching Case studies/Serious games/Оther
1. ISO Methodology 2.0
Although several studies explored the economic benefits of standards, comparing them might be difficult, due to differences in overall objectives, methodologies, as well as organizations conducting these studies.
This might be one of the reasons why the International Organization for Standardisation (ISO) has developed a simple, step-by-step methodology and a robust set of tools to measure the economic benefits of standards. The primary scope of the ISO Methodology 2.0. is assessing the economic benefits of standards (e.g., the contribution of standards to the creation of economic value) for a company. ISO methodology can be applied to all companies and industry sectors to identify the contribution that standards make to their performance (ISO, 2013).
To learn more about the ISO Methodology, please visit the following link:
https://www.iso.org/files/live/sites/isoorg/files/archive/pdf/en/pub100344.pdf
Good practice
Quantitative approaches are rare in education on standardisation, but this should not be the case. Engaging students in evaluating the economic benefits of standards (e.g., by using a systematic approach of ISO Methodology) bridges theoretical knowledge with practical aspects of standards implementation.
Evaluation of the economic benefits of standardisation is a challenging task; substantial time frame and quality of data are needed. A good practice is to provide a case study with quantitative data to students to make their conclusion. The experience with students in business and engineering studies is quite rewarding, it can raise their understanding of the complexity of economic impacts of standards implementation. Case studies that demonstrate how standards impact specific sectors, such as Manufacturing or ICT, thus enabling a clearer understanding of the role standards play in enhancing GDP and productivity are provided at the ISO website (not all with high quality).
Recommended sources
- Abdelkafi, N., Bekkers, R., Bolla, R., Rodriguez-Ascaso, A., & Wetterwald, M. (2021). Understanding ICT Standardisation: Principles and Practice, ETSI 2021, https://www.etsi.org/images/files/Education/Textbook_Understanding_ICT_Standardisation. pdf, 2nd Edition, Chapter 8.
- Baron, J., & Spulber, D. F. (2018). Technology Standards and Standard Setting Organizations: Introduction to the Searle Center Database. Journal of Economics and Management Strategy, 27(3), 462–503. https://doi.org/10.1111/jems.12257.
- David, P. (1987). Some new standards for the economics of standardisation in the information age.In M. Waterson, P. Dasgupta, & P. Stoneman (Eds.), Economic Policy and Technological Performance. (Vol. 98, Issue 392). https://doi.org/10.2307/2233926, pp. 857.
- David, P., & Greenstein, S. (1990). The economics of compatibility standards: An introduction to recent research. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1(1–2). https://doi.org/10.1080/10438599000000002, pp. 3-41.
- Pham, T. H. (2006). Economic Aspects of Standardisation. In W. Hesser, Feilzer, & H. De Vries (Eds.), Standardisation in Companies and Markets. Helmut Schmidt University, Hamburg, pp. 77-123.
- Spivak, S., & Brenner, C. (2001). Standardisation Essentials: Principles and Practice. CRC Press.
- Stroyan, J., & Brown, N. (2012). Using Standards to Support Growth, Competitiveness and Innovation. In Guidebook Series: How to Support SME Policy from Structural Funds. (October).
- Blind, K. (2004). The Economics of Standards – Theory, Evidence, Policy. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
- Swann, G.M.P. (2010). The Economics of Standardisation: An Update.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a790abd40f0b679c0a0812d/10-1135-economicsof-standardisation-update.pdf - Wiegmann, P.M., de Vries, H.J., Eom, D. (2023). Measuring societal impact of standards. Eindhoven: Eindhoven University of Technology. https://pure.tue.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/299190300/Full_XXM_Report_2022_11_28.pdf.