How Many Standards in a Laptop? (and other Empirical Questions)

How Many Standards in a Laptop? (and other Empirical Questions)

Brad Biddle, ASU Professor, Sean Woods, and Andrew White

10/21/2011
(Original Publish Date: 9/10/2010)

An empirical study which identifies 251 technical interoperability standards implemented in a modern laptop computer, and estimates that the total number of standards relevant to such a device is much higher. Of the identified standards, the authors find that 44% were developed by consortia, 36% by formal standards development organizations, and 20% by single companies. The intellectual property rights policies associated with 197 of the standards are assessed: 75% were developed under "RAND" terms, 22% under "royalty free" terms, and 3% utilize a patent pool. The authors make certain observations based on their findings, and identify promising areas for future research.