Anti-extremism as a strategy (was: Google payment plans)

On 04/10/2014 06:54 AM, Anders Rundgren wrote:
> The W3C payment initiative has the two worst imaginable competitors:
>  Status Quo and Google. To fight this, requires more than just 
> technology; it requires a *strategy*. ... That's what I in an 
> off-list message meant with taking *extreme measures*.

While I appreciate some of your cynicism, the basic premise of your
argument is off, Anders. :)

Here's why:

You're approaching this whole payments standardization process as a
large conflict where "extreme measures" will ensure a favorable result.
If it's one thing that your approach will do, it will be to alienate
exactly the sort of organizations that we are going to need in order to
make this initiative successful.

While there is certainly competition in the form of the status quo, and
some pretty compelling proprietary products from W3C member companies,
it would be wrong to frame the discussion where we're working /against/
W3C member companies (or the payments industry, in general). If that
happens, we can only hope for fragmentation in the marketplace and a
failure of what we're trying to accomplish here.

Here are a few goals that we're trying to achieve:

1. Build a basic set of technologies for the Web platform that create a
level playing field as it relates to sending and receiving money on the
Web.

2. Bring as many of the existing financial industry players as we can
along without causing too much disruption to their day to day
operations. Some will refuse to join us, but it won't be because we
didn't try very hard to bring them along.

I'm having a hard time understanding exactly what you're proposing, but
it sounds like your "extreme measures" will destroy much of the good
will and progress that we've achieved to date. Please be clear in what
you're proposing we do as a community. I'm going to send something out
in a bit outlining what we have done as a community to date, and what
I'd like us to do as a community over the next 12 months.

-- manu

PS: Mailing list arguments are good, as long as they have a concrete
outcome. What exactly do you want to see happen?

-- 
Manu Sporny (skype: msporny, twitter: manusporny, G+: +Manu Sporny)
Founder/CEO - Digital Bazaar, Inc.
blog: The Worlds First Web Payments Workshop
http://www.w3.org/2013/10/payments/

Received on Thursday, 10 April 2014 17:57:28 UTC