Findings and Recommendations from a Pan-European Research Project: Comparative Analysis of E-Catalog Standards

This paper describes the methodology of a European research project on e-catalog standards and presents its major findings by formulating recommendations for future standardization work. The comparative analysis of 14 standards was conducted within the CEN/ISSS Workshop eCAT that aims at setting the basis for harmonized e-catalog standards. As part of this workshop, we present a framework and a complementing set of criteria for assessing the quality of ebusiness standards. Eventually, we apply this methodology to our object of interest. The findings can be regarded as an assessment of the state of the art in e-catalog standardization. By identifying problems and obstacles that hinder a broader acceptance and diffusion of standards, we argue on more suitable, harmonized standards.