Initial project is the recently launched 3MF Consortium
WAKEFIELD, Mass. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — May 13, 2015 — The Joint Development Foundation (JDF), an organization that enables standards and source code development collaborations to start operations quickly and efficiently, has launched its first public project, the 3MF Consortium. Announced April 30, the 3MF Consortium released the first version of a new, open file format for 3D printing.
The JDF helps smaller standards and source code projects to get up and running quickly by providing a turnkey infrastructure. By offering a proven, lightweight governance structure and a choice of industry-standard intellectual property options, projects can be quickly established without the time and expense usually needed to establish a new technical collaboration. And, once established, they can take advantage of the JDF's corporate infrastructure and on-demand staffing options.
The JDF agreements were developed by legal experts well versed in standards development and intellectual property. These agreements make it simple and easy for groups to start up and operate, and even transition their work into formal standards bodies in the future.
"The JDF helps speed standards development while maintaining a strong legal and governance structure. By providing a 'standards organization in a box,' the JDF enables groups to concentrate on getting to work instead of negotiating custom legal agreements," said David Rudin, JDF President and Assistant General Counsel at Microsoft.
"As a CFO of a small company with limited resources in charge of legal matters, I could not have participated as an equal partner with four large U.S. corporations without JDF," said Albert Klein, CFO of FIT AG. "The use of established legal agreements allowed us to avoid protracted legal reviews and negotiations."
The 3MF Consortium capitalized on the JDF's quick-start offerings: a small group of companies used the JDF's simple and convenient pre-packaged structure to complete and deliver a new 3D printing specification and publicly launch the organization in record time, including its web presence, internal collaboration tools, and financial systems.
JDF projects operate independently, with the JDF monitoring projects to help ensure that each project's activities function in accordance with the foundation's corporate purpose and policies, such as its non-profit status and regulatory guidelines. The JDF provides its services to projects at no cost, and can also help projects obtain additional fee-based services such as web development, accounting support, banking, project management, and membership coordination.
About the Joint Development Foundation
Launched in 2015, the Joint Development Foundation (JDF) is an independent non-profit organization that provides the corporate and legal infrastructure to enable groups to quickly establish and operate standards and source code development collaborations. More information about the JDF is available at http://www.jointdevelopment.org/.
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