Announcing Liaison Working Groups

To complement existing Working Groups, the Board of Directors has decided to allow the creation of Liaison Working Groups (LWGs) to promote interaction with third-party standards-development communities. LWGs are created to meet specific objectives, typically restricted to a narrow vertical marketplace.

How LWGs differ from TWGs

LWGs may include individuals who are not members of the PDF Association either as individuals or via a company membership. The chairperson of an LWG may invite 3rd party members as he or she deems necessary. The identities of these members must be posted on the respective Intranet page for the LWG. Non-members may participate via the LWG’s mailing-list, but cannot access the intranet, and may not be provided with ISO draft documents. Non-members would be required to provide a statement briefly explaining their background and objectives in the LWG. Such statements would be posted to the intranet.

The basic rules are the same

As with other Working Groups, the creation of a LWG and the appointment of a chairperson must be approved by the Board of Directors. The LWG chairperson must be a PDF Association member. Publication rules for LWGs are the same as for TWGs (a vote of the LWG followed by the Partners and finally the Members). The Board reserves the right to exclude any specific individual or organization.