Open Source Development: A suitable Method to introduce a standardized communication protocol?

Open Source developments like telnet and Apache are very important for an extensive and compatible use of the TCP/IP and the HTTP protocol. Both contain features which rely on a compatible implementation of complex interactions between computers of different platform types. This can be successfully achieved with the help of Open Source. Reconciliation of different interpretations of the standard, clarifications and extensions can be realised by discussion systems and some generally accepted conciliators of Open Source projects. As long as companies have a commercial interest in selling solutions based on the protocol, it makes economic sense for them to jointly support its common implementation. This paper examines the possibility to use an Open Source reference implementation of the agricultural communication protocols DIN 9684 [1] [2] and ISO 11783 to establish a capable and compatible implementation in agricultural mobile process control and data collection.