The Open Document Format (ODF) proponents are alleging that the Microsoft has "cajoled" Indian NGOs to write to the IT ministry and BIS, supporting OOXML as a standard.
In another setback to software giant Microsoft, it will have to wait for "several months" before the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) can take a final decision on whether its Office Open XML (OOXML) file format will be an international standard or not.
Microsoft suffered another major blow when India said "no" to the software major's format Office Open XML (OOXML). The software major now awaits a final verdict from the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) on March 31 this year when the standards organisation recompiles the votes from all countries.
The Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, has taken strong objection to the fact that despite a "No" to OOXML by a majority of the Bureau of Indian Standardsmembers, the software giant "continued to make representations to the top Indian leadership (read Ministry of Consumer Affairs), pressuring them to change the Indian vote".
After nearly 14 months of discussion, debate and controversies surrounding them, the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) has finally declared that Microsoft's Office Open XML (OOXML) file format has received the necessary number of votes for approval as an ISO/IEC international standard.