Standards influence how technology can be used, combined and disseminated. They create shared frameworks that enable different actors to develop solutions that work together, and in doing so shape how markets grow and compete.

We met Muriel Deschanel, whose career has been shaped by innovation in digital technologies. Muriel is an engineer and has worked with areas including video compression, IP-based TV services and augmented reality. Today, she is part of ETSI’s Strategy and Innovation team, where she works towards connecting research initiatives, innovative approaches and standardisation best practice.

One of the research-focused initiatives recently launched by ETSI is the Research & Innovation Award. Its purpose is to recognise researchers, innovators, and projects whose work has had an impact on ETSI’s standardisation activities, and to further encourage greater engagement from the research community.

Two logics in interaction

Research and standardisation are closely connected. Standards depend on access to cutting-edge technological development, while research requires pathways to practical application in real-world products and services. Their relationship is both complex and interdependent resting on a reciprocal dynamic in which knowledge is developed, tested and translated into shared frameworks.

At the same time, they operate according to different logics.

Academic careers are largely built on publications, citations and scientific visibility. Results are published in scholarly journals, reviewed within defined expert communities and attributed to individual researchers or research groups. Recognition is individual and tied to clear references.

Muriel Deschanel, Research and Innovation Technical Officer at ETSI.

Standardisation work follows a different structure. Technical contributions are developed, discussed, revised and incorporated into joint documents through consensus. Contributions are often collective and version-controlled, and it is frequently difficult to attribute a specific wording to a single individual. The work also takes place in forums that are not primarily oriented towards academic publications.

These differences mean that the interaction between research and standardisation is not always self-evident. Yet it is precisely in the coming together of these twin logics that research results are tested against requirements of feasibility, interoperability and broad acceptance. The time devoted to standardisation can be difficult to justify within a traditional academic merit system, even when the work has tangible significance for how technology is developed and deployed on a global scale.

“Research and standardisation depend on each other. But if contributions to standards are not recognised, we risk losing the expertise needed to remain at the forefront of technology development.”

From academic membership to active participation

148 Research Bodies and Universities are members of ETSI. According to Muriel, however, actual participation is often limited to a small number of highly enthusiastic individuals. Membership does not automatically translate into active contribution to the joint process where technical proposals are reviewed and eventually shaped into open industry standards that can be deployed on a global scale.

At the same time, she observes a tendency for participants in standardisation groups to become older. Engagement from younger researchers and engineers is not self-evident.

Standardisation work is time-consuming and built on long-term commitment. For early-career researchers, who are often dependent on clearly recognised academic merits, it can be difficult to prioritise forums where the benefits are not immediately visible in the form of publications or academic advancement.

The question of participation therefore concerns both interest and structural conditions. How standardisation work is formally recognised within academic career systems influences the extent to which younger researchers choose to engage.

Standards that reflect technological development presuppose active engagement between the research community, industry, and other stakeholders. It requires presence in discussions where technical solutions are scrutinised and shaped.

How contributions are examined and shaped

Muriel describes standardisation as an environment in which technical contributions are not merely presented but examined and reviewed. Proposals are discussed by representatives from academia, industry, and other organisations with different perspectives and experience.

This collective standardisation activity can be considered as a form of qualified review, though within a broader context than traditional peer review. A contribution must be technically sound, but also clearly formulated and capable of achieving agreement.

ETSI standards are developed through dialogue and consensus. This means that expertise is crucial, but also that contributions must be open to discussion, defence, modification, and further development together with others.

Through this process, technical specifications take shape, along with shared conditions for how technology will be used in practice. Standards create predictability and enable different actors to develop solutions in parallel, with the assurance that they will function together. The interplay is therefore not only about bringing research into standards, but also about establishing a common foundation for continued technological development.

When is standardisation relevant for research?

Muriel emphasises that not all research is intended to be translated into standards. Standardisation becomes relevant where shared interfaces and interoperability create value, and where solutions need to function together within a broader ecosystem.

An example could be a connected transport system in which vehicles, road infrastructure, control systems and safety functions are developed by different actors. One research group might develop a new method for more efficient communication between vehicles and infrastructure, while others develop sensors, control systems, or traffic management software.

For these components to function together, common interfaces and agreed protocols are required. It is primarily the elements that enable communication and coordination that need to be standardised, rather than the underlying algorithm itself.

When such interfaces are clearly defined, multiple actors can contribute specialised components, systems can be upgraded step by step, and public authorities can procure solutions without becoming dependent on a single supplier. In such situations, standardisation functions as a tool for enabling interplay between different technical solutions over time.

Interoperability in practice: shared interfaces create the conditions for interplay between technologies developed by different actors.

Recognition that strengthens the interplay

Against this background, ETSI has launched a Research & Innovation Award. It comprises three categories:

• Individual researchers
• Young researchers
• Publicly funded collaborative projects

For a nomination to be accepted, it must be validated by the chair or vice-chair of the relevant ETSI standards group. This means that the contribution must have had demonstrable and valued significance for the standardisation work in ETSI – for example by influencing a specification, contributing to technical direction, or playing a role in the work of a group.

“With the ETSI Research & Innovation Award, we want to recognise the impact that researchers and innovators have already had on ETSI’s work – and encourage more to contribute.”

The award forms part of this broader context and highlights the role researchers play in the linking technological development and shared standards.

The first edition of the ETSI Research & Innovation Awards will be presented at the EuCNC & 6G Summit, held in June 2026 in Málaga, Spain.

Looking ahead

Muriel expresses a wish to see more individual researchers actively participating in standardisation. The aim is not merely more members, but deeper, more sustained engagement and ongoing contribution to the ETSI work programme.

The relevance of standards is closely linked to technological development taking place in research environments. When research and standardisation interact, technical knowledge can be translated into shared frameworks that influence how technology is developed and used.

The ETSI Research and Innovation award is part of this effort – a practical way of making clear that contributions to standards play a role in this collaborative process.

Further reading:

How are standards shaped in the early phases of technological development? Read the interview with David Boswarthick (ETSI Director of Strategy and Innovation) on innovation and structure in standardisation.