Certified software now available for new XBRL formats
XBRL International is delighted to announce the certification of several software products for use with the xBRL-CSV and xBRL-JSON formats. Five companies have updated their products to enable them to be certified for both xBRL-CSV and xBRL-JSON: Altova, Amana, Arelle, CoreFiling and UBPartner. This marks an important milestone: end users can now choose with confidence from multiple software products that have been formally tested for interoperability – offering reliable options for anyone wishing to explore the possibilities of these formats.
xBRL-CSV and xBRL-JSON were launched last year, following a thorough multi-year effort to develop, review and finalise their specifications. They provide new tools for digital reporting: xBRL-CSV is ideal for handling large volumes of granular data, while xBRL-JSON is easy to consume and analyse using familiar tools, and facilitates innovation by software developers. We are already seeing substantial interest in xBRL-CSV from regulators, with implementation being planned or considered in a number of jurisdictions. This includes the European Banking Authority, which has included xBRL-CSV metadata in its recent taxonomy releases. The availability of certified software for xBRL-CSV highlights a key benefit of using an open standard for business reporting: access to a market of interoperable, off-the-shelf software products. A diverse, active software market is beneficial for everyone involved in digital reporting, driving high quality and generating creative solutions for varied reporting needs.
But what exactly do we mean by certified software? While a wide range of products are available for preparing, reviewing and validating XBRL reports, only those with XBRL Certified Software status have been thoroughly tested by XBRL International for conformance with the current XBRL specifications. The most important advantage of certified software is full interoperability. You can, for example, create an XBRL report using one certified software product, successfully validate it in another, and open and analyse it consistently with any other certified software.
Software certification has helped bring about some notable improvements in XBRL data quality – and now we are bringing those benefits to the newest XBRL formats. Just like the XBRL specification itself, certification is modular: optional xBRL-CSV and xBRL-JSON modules are the latest addition to the programme.
We strongly encourage all those interested in the future of reporting to experiment with these formats – and are pleased to affirm the availability of certified software products representing a range of ready-to-use options for preparers, investors, regulators and other users. We also urge other vendors to explore incorporating xBRL-CSV and xBRL-JSON functionalities in their products, and to contact us to learn more about software certification.
Once again, we congratulate Altova, Amana, Arelle, CoreFiling and UBPartner, and thank them for leading the way in implementing xBRL-CSV and xBRL-JSON.
Read more here.
