[xtm-wg] Swindon Minutes Module #1: Marketing

["Steven R. Newcomb" <srn@coolheads.com>]

Swindon Minutes Module #1: Marketing

| This is a hunk of the draft minutes of the October 13-15, 2000
| meeting of the XTM Authoring Group in Swindon, England.

| Those who were present at the meeting are invited to suggest changes
| for the sake of recording the intent of the meeting more accurately.

***************************************************************

  Marketing, IDEAlliance, the XTM Special Interest Day at XML 2000,
  etc. etc.

    A new Marketing Subgroup was unanimously chartered, to begin
    functioning as soon as possible.  With a few exceptional
    provisions as noted below, it will be a Subgroup like all others,
    fully under the control of the AG, reporting to the AG, having all
    of its responsibilities explicitly delegated to it by the AG, and
    with its operating rules, except as specifically noted in these
    minutes, the same as those of the AG itself, as described in the
    Charter.

    The membership of the Marketing Subgroup will consist of the
    nominees of the organizations represented by the Participating
    Members (PMs).  Each such organization shall be entitled to
    nominate one member, with such nomination not subject to approval
    of the AG as a whole.  The nominee may or may not be a PM.  No
    organization shall be represented by more than one person in the
    Marketing Subgroup who shall have a vote in the decisions of the
    Marketing Subgroup.  (As in the case of the other subgroups, the
    Marketing Subgroup may, at its own discretion, invite any others
    to participate in all of its activities except when voting to
    determine its own decisions.)  Except with respect to voting and
    voting procedures as set forth in the Topicmaps.Org charter, the
    Marketing Subgroup shall determine its own operating procedures.
    The following examples of the Marketing Subgroup's authority over
    its own procedures are not by any means exhaustive:

    * The Marketing Subgroup will select its own officers, if it
      decides to have any.

    * The Marketing Subgroup may delegate its authority and
      responsibility in any matter in which it has authority and
      responsibility.

    * The Marketing Subgroup will determine the relationship between
      the AG and IDEAlliance.

    The initial members of the Marketing Subgroup shall be (in
    alphabetical order):

      Pamela Gennusa, representing Ontopia (PMs: Pepper)
      Dianne Kennedy, representing InfoLoom (PM: Biezunski)
      Jason Markos, representing Empolis (PM: Moore)
      Ramon Vincent, representing Mondeca (PM: Delahousse)

    Additional members may be nominated at any time by PM-sponsoring
    organizations not already represented.  Such nominees shall be
    expected to assume the duties of membership immediately upon their
    nomination.  The Marketing Subgroup is not required to seek
    members for itself from as-yet-unrepresented PM-sponsoring
    organizations, but it may do so at its discretion.  PMs are not
    required to encourage their sponsoring organizations to nominate
    persons to be members of the Marketing Subgroup, but they may do
    so at their discretion.  (The Marketing Subgroup and such PMs may,
    of course, communicate with each other about this and any other
    matter, since it is clearly in the best interests of everyone to
    have as many PM-sponsoring organizations represented in the
    Marketing Subgroup as may be possible.)

    For the sake of fairness and for the stability and longterm
    existence of Topicmaps.Org, it is of the utmost importance that
    all PM-sponsoring organizations share equally in any "first-mover
    advantage" that falls out of any marketing activities that are
    directly associated with the activities of the AG, and the
    Marketing Subgroup is directed and required to consider carefully
    how to meet this requirement.  One example of how this principle
    should be applied specifically is that the Marketing Subgroup is
    directed and required to provide promptly to the AG any contact
    information gathered in the course of its activities, and to
    gather such contact information at the events that it organizes,
    sponsors, and/or accredits.

    The authority and responsibility specifically delegated by the AG
    to the Marketing Subgroup is as follows:

    (1) The Marketing Subgroup is directed and required to seek
        funding for all of its activities, and to use its discretion
        to institute such administrative, technical, and legal
        mechanisms as it deems fit in order to accomplish this end.
        The AG will promptly cooperate as necessary in all such
        institutions, requiring only reasonable review by the
        Co-chairs, and, at their discretion, a vote by the
        Participating Members in accordance with the Charter.  The
        Marketing Subgroup is authorized to create and/or otherwise
        legally acquire intellectual property for marketing purposes
        only, such as logos, domain names, marketing collateral, etc.
        All such intellectual property shall be owned without
        restriction by the AG, regardless of how it was funded or
        acquired.  The Marketing Subgroup is authorized to license
        such intellectual property on behalf of the AG and to enter
        into agreements with any parties that are binding upon the AG
        with respect to such marketing intellectual property.
        However, the Marketing Subgroup shall not transfer ownership
        of, nor otherwise hypothecate or license any other
        Topicmaps.Org intellectual property, such as the XTM
        Specification itself or other intellectual property
        contributions made to the AG, without the express written
        approval of the AG.  Moreover, the Marketing Subgroup is not
        currently authorized to impose fees or obligations of any
        kind, for any purpose, upon the AG or upon its members or
        invitees.

    (2) The Marketing Subgroup is directed and required to consider
        whether and how any market research activities may be
        appropriate, and to undertake such research activities as it
        deems appropriate and practical.  The results of all such
        research shall be made available promptly to the AG for
        distribution to the Participating Members, and ownership of
        the results of such research shall reside solely with the AG.

    (3) The Marketing Subgroup is directed and required to take charge
        of all aspects of the XTM Interest Day event being planned in
        conjunction with the XML 2000 Conference in December, 2000.
        (As with all of its other authorities and responsibilities,
        the Marketing Subgroup may delegate its authority and
        responsibility in this matter in whatever ways it deems
        appropriate.)  The Marketing Subgroup is informed that Daniel
        Rivers-Moore suggests that the KNOW Initiative might help with
        the program.

    (4) The Marketing Subgroup is directed and required to take charge
        of all marketing aspects of the Topicmaps.Org website, which
        currently does not exist.  The Marketing Subgroup is informed
        that Michel Biezunski is personally the current owner of the
        topicmaps.org domain name, and that he has offered to
        contribute it.  It is also informed that there are likely to
        be other, non-marketing-related, highly technical aspects to
        the maintenance of the website, including
        publication/distribution of technical materials such as the
        XTM Specification itself and other documents and materials
        developed in the course of non-marketing-related AG
        activities.  The topicmaps.org website will also have research
        and development functions, particularly in the area of Public
        Subject Identifier / Public Subject Descriptor resolution
        services.  Therefore, the AG desires and requires that it have
        absolute, unrestricted, systems-level ("super-user") access to
        whatever web server(s) the topicmaps.org domain name is
        assigned.  In case it is not otherwise possible for the
        Marketing Subgroup to secure such breadth of service and
        access, the Marketing Subgroup is hereby informed that Steven
        R. Newcomb has offered to contribute, at least pro tempore,
        the use of his personal web server for both marketing and
        research purposes.

    (5) The Marketing Subgroup is directed and required to consider
        whether and how the XTM work should be represented on the
        KT2001 committee.  (KT2001 is Knowledge Technologies 2001, a
        GCA conference formerly known as XTech.  Inquiries should be
        directed to Dianne Kennedy, who is the conference chair.)


***************************************************************

-Steve

--
Steven R. Newcomb, Consultant
srn@coolheads.com

voice: +1 972 359 8160
fax:   +1 972 359 0270

405 Flagler Court
Allen, Texas 75013-2821 USA

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