Is XML an enabler of Assurance Services?

““Unlocking the Treasures of Standards”Unlocking the Treasures of Standards”

EDGAREDGAR ®®

NLINE NLINEOO SMSM

Presented by: Liv A. Watson

Director – EDGAR Online

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Agenda• Communication Problems

• XML

• XML Standards

• Is XML an enabler of continuous auditing and assurances

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From Evansville Courier and Press

Is There A Problem?

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What is XML (Extensible Markup Language) ?

• is a markup language for documents containing structured information.

• Consortiums– Taxonomies

– Specifications

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How does it work?How does it work?

• XML gives meaning to information through the use of tags

<Customer> <Name>Liv A. Watson</Name> <Company>Edgar Online Inc.</Company> <Title>Director</Title> <Age>22</Age></Customer>

Caution.. …Just because something is <tagged>.. Does not mean it is accurate?

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Why is XML so Important?Why is XML so Important?

• Portable• Vendor neutral• Readable data format• More flexible and easier to use than EDI• All major software products are becoming

“XML” enabled• Defacto standards for data exchange• Enabling new levels of interoperability

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Extensible Markup Language…is a meta markup language the World Wide Web

Consortium (W3C) considers a universal standard for describing both structured data and the behavior of applications that process the language.

XML

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BUSINESS

XBRL Adds Reporting to E-CommerceXBRL Adds Reporting to E-Commerce

Investors

Aggregators

Regulators Creditors LendersTax Website

ERP G/L Packages CRM

•Orders•A/P•Delivery

Customers•Orders•A/R•Delivery

Suppliers

2-way2-wayTransaction Creation

Oneway

Oneway

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XBRL Adds Reporting to E-CommerceXBRL Adds Reporting to E-Commerce

BUSINESS

Investors

Aggregators

Regulators Creditors LendersTax Website

Transaction Creation

ERP G/L Packages CRM

•Orders•A/P•Delivery

Customers•Orders•A/R•Delivery

2-way2-way

Suppliers

Oneway

Oneway

XBRL

BUSINESS REPORTING

(e-)CommerceOTHER XML INITIATIVES

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XML Technologies XML Technologies • Markup

– eXtensible Markup Language (XML 1.0)

• Presentation– eXtensible Stylesheet Language (XSL)

– eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformations (XSTL)

• Schema– Document Type Definition (DTD)

– Resource Description Framework (RDF)

– XML Data Schema

– Namespaces

• Relationship/Queries– XML Linking Language (XLL)

– XML Query Language (XQL)

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Bon Jour!

Hejsan? Hello?

There can be no doubt that standards are a desirable prerequisite for commerce - especially international trade and communications. However, the standards of which we are most concerned revolve around communication protocols and document standards.

The Reason for StandardsThe Reason for Standards

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XML Is a StandardXML Is a Standard

The problem with standards …. But this is changing.

Door opener. ‘XML? Yes, we can handle that.’

Normalization. Content type

becomes irrelevant.

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XML’s Role in the Continuous XML’s Role in the Continuous Assurance Market PlaceAssurance Market Place

XML is making life easier for integrators. This is a good thing.

XML is becoming the preferred format for many sources of financial information.

The result: There are real opportunities for changing the way the business thinks about market data.

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XML’s Contribution to a XML’s Contribution to a Continues AssurancesContinues Assurances

A standard. We’re all talking the same language.

Flexibility. All data types covered; flexible approach to display.

Cost. Opportunities for significant savings vs. existing solutions.

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New Application FeaturesNew Application Features

• Focus on online processing rather than batch processing;

• Enable contextual message processing rather than stand-alone message transport;

• Allow concurrent, not sequential, exchange of information;

• Allow real-time data communication, processing and update capabilities.

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XBRL Issues Foundational ConflictsXBRL Issues Foundational Conflicts

Document centrictraditional disclosures

Data centricXBRL disclosures

Human usage

Print Web

Data extraction

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Single XML Vocabulary? It is a matter of…Single XML Vocabulary? It is a matter of…

• Timing– Organizations need to decide when they can

migrate to this new way of developing standards

• Education– Organizations need to understand/utilize the

standards methodology

• Governance– Organizations need to understand their role in

future standards development through the standards repository

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ReferencesReferencesWiley Publication Fall 2002Wiley Publication Fall 2002

• Miklos A. VasarhelyiKPMG Professor of AIS

• Liv A.Watson, Director of XBRL- EDGAR Online, Inc.

• Brian L. McGuire, Ph.D. CPA, CMA Department of Accounting and Business Law School of Business University of Southern Indiana

• Rajendra P. SrivastavaErnst & Young Distinguished Professor and DirectorErnst & Young Center for Auditing Research and Advanced Technology

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Concluding Remarks…..

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Questions and

Answers