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106 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2019 makes. These standards cover everything from raw materials to production processes and the inspection and test of the numerous discrete and individual products that make up the final product acquired by the consum - er or user. Standards come in a number of forms, and here are the four main types. 1. De Jure Standards You are probably the most familiar with de jure standards, which are standards according to an agreed-upon process. This is often by a committee that is endorsed by a formal stan- dards organization, such as IPC, IEEE, IEC, JEDEC, UL, or JEITA. Each organization rati- fies its standards through its own official pro- cedures and gives the standard its stamp of approval. 2. De Facto Standards De facto standards have come to exist based on commonly accepted practices and have been adopted widely by an industry and its cus- tomers much like com- mon law. De facto stan- dards are created when a critical mass likes them well enough to collectively use them. They are often codified and turned into de jure standards by standards bodies when the value is seen or finally recognized (something argu - ably still in the works for concepts like the Oc- cam process and SAFE technology). Emerging markets often evolve using de facto standards in the early stages because normal standards organizations are wedded to incumbent mar- kets and technologies and typically focus only on the here and now. 3. Proprietary Standards Proprietary standards are typically owned by a single company and often backed by special intellectual property ownership rights and/or trade secrets such that only the company or its designated customers and partners are al- lowed to use them. This creates a monopoly for the company, but it also restricts the growth of the underlying technology. However, under some circumstances, it can prove quite lucra- tive, as one well-known smartphone company has shown. 4. Open-Proprietary Standards The final types of standards are the so- called open-proprietary standards, which are also developed and owned by a single company(such as Verdant Electronics and its Occam process), but the company will usual- ly allow anyone to use them to help grow the market for the benefit of all. Because the com- pany spent time and money researching and developing the technology covered by their proprietary and patented efforts, there is fre- quently a licensing fee involved. To be successful, it is gen- erally agreed that the fee is reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND, in the par- lance of the industry). The company that is openly licensing its proprietary standard is required to main - tain and support the standard under license. This also requires time and effort. Such licenses often have grant-back clauses that require any improvements to the basic standard to be included for the bene - fit of all other licensees that require resources. Again, there may be an agreement that there be some fair and reasonable compensation for the company that made improvements. This is one way to make sure that progress continues for the benefit of all involved. Standards Approval Of these four types of standards, formal or de jure standards are clearly the most com- mon. To generate such standards is neither fast nor easy, as it involves the cooperation of many companies that are frequent competi- tors. However, the participants understand the meaning of the adage, "A rising tide lifts all