Whereas a platform, as it is often used in the computer industry, is a software or hardware system that provides a basis for building other systems. For example, the radio is an obvious electronic medium because it provides a channel for the distribution of music, news, etc. Broadcast television is clearly an electronic medium because it also provides a channel for the distribution of dramas, music, news, etc. Interoperability makes it possible to purchase a radio or TV set from any vendor and to use it to receive any broadcast from any broadcaster. A lack of interoperability would mean that different radios or TV sets would have to be purchased for each kind of broadcast.
Open standards are what make interoperability possible.
Today, any manufacturer can obtain the specifications required to meet the standards necessary to build an interoperable radio or TV set. A number of different standards are being proposed for e-books. The two content formats being used are HTML and Postscript. HTML has the advantage of being used for millions of Internet Web pages. HTML is simpler to process on a small-memory system.