So does this mean that the “traditional” way of creating standards has been turned on it’s head? Whereas standards were once created by global bodies and the industry had to seek to “achieve” those standards, it sounds like the industry can now do what it likes and the standards are just a collation of the best bits.

This sounds to me like web standards are becoming less of a gold standard (no pun intended) for good web development practice and more of an excuse for ratifying new browser features. What I’m worried about is that the less exciting or more difficult aspects of web standards (like promoting accessibility) will be gradually forgotten and left behind.

I thought the W3C included representation from the major players, so surely the big browsers have a pretty loud voice when it comes to defining the ’standard’.

If the W3C doesn’t already include Mozilla and Microsoft reps then it has been wasting its time.

writing standards and hoping that the browsers will follow doesn’t work

By the same token, allowing browser vendors a free-for-all and hoping that they’ll permit themselves to be reigned in doesn’t work either — this is the exact situation that resulted in the so-called “browser wars”, ActiveX and the death of Netscape.

It needs to be a bit of both. Measured innovation, if you will. The W3C still has a place, it’s just not the one-way process they’ve always attempted to make it.