As many know by now, OGC is working to bring KML into the international standardization process. There’s a public mailing list for interested parties to discuss what they would like to see in an OGC KML, but I’d like to spend a second on the legal aspect, which is just as important. Here’s a post I just made on the GeoRSS mailing list:

And one crucial point that I think a lot of people miss is the legal intellectual property aspect. Bringing KML into OGC isn’t just about what features end up in that XML format. It’s just as much about making sure the format is royalty-free to use forever. We all know the Google mantra is “don’t be evil” (and the people I know there completely live up to the mantra), but OGC standardization means you don’t have to take their word for it.

So by standardizing KML in OGC, even if people don’t get all the features in there they may like to see, at least you will know you can build innovative applications and information services around KML without fear of getting a cease-and-desist in the mail some day.