ODF supporters are welcoming presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama's promise to put government data online in universally accessible formats should he be elected. "We have to use technology to open up our democracy. It's no coincidence that one of the most secretive Administrations in history has favored special interests and pursued policies that could not stand up to sunlight. As President, I'll change that. I'll put government data online in universally accessible formats," Obama said in a speech at Google's Mountain View campus last week, where he also revealed his detailed IT plan for a more open and technically enabled government.
Marino Marcich, the managing director of the ODF Alliance, applauded the move as a sign of the growing recognition of the importance of the issue. "Public information that can be read and downloaded by anyone without need of a particular brand of software is central to the mission of the ODF Alliance and a key feature of the OpenDocument Format," said Marcich. "We are excited that leading American officials are joining the growing chorus of international and domestic voices that have already recognized the importance of truly open standards."
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