I feel that open standards are one of the most powerful mechanisms for driving innovation and economic value in the systems industry.   First, I should define what I mean by Open Standard.  A technology is open when there is a public, detail specification of how it works and how to use it  AND there is a public forum through which the it can be updated and changed.

Why does an open standard drive value?   Because it crates an open market around the implementing the standard.   It forces suppliers to work collaboratively with buyers to create systems that are easier to understand, lower cost to change, and perform better.   The opposite is proprietary standards, which lock in suppliers, drive complexity, and rase long term costs by creating a technical priest hood.