Section 14.13. How can we ensure that web services will interoperate?

14.13. How can we ensure that web services will interoperate?

Given the proliferation of standards and the importance of web services to the future of e-commerce, it is important to have a method to guarantee interoperability between organizations at different levels. The Web Services Interoperability Organization, or WS-I, is tasked with accelerating the adoption of web services by reducing the cost associated with standards adoption. WS-I promotes collections of technical standards called profiles that are used for web services between organizations. The initial profile, called WS-I Basic Profile 1.0, includes HTTP, XML, XSD, SOAP, WSDL, and UDDI. Companies know that if another company complies with the basic profile, interoperability is assured via open standards. WS-I also provides documentation and test tools for working with services and the basic profile.