GS1 Launches Major Update to Global Data Synchronization Network

BRUSSELS, May 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- GS1, the global standards organization, announced the successful global launch of GDSN Major Release 3, an update to the Global Data Synchronization Network^TM (GDSN®) standard. The launch brings a new level of speed, efficiency and information-sharing flexibility to the nearly 40,000 organizations worldwide that rely on GDSN to share trusted product data with their business partners in an automatic, and immediate way. With enhancements like richer product information sharing, industry-specific functionality and better regulatory compliance features, the release of GDSN Major Release 3 empowers organizations to respond to new and emerging marketplace demands like never before.

GDSN is a networked product data sharing system that is managed by the GDSN standard (www.gs1.org/gdsn). It contains over 20 million products. This standard ensures that information, like pricing or product data, exchanged among networked trading partners is accurate. Any change made to one company's database is immediately shared with the other partners. The GDSN Major Release 3 update takes this process to the next level with over 1,500 improvements, including support for new product attributes and the consistent sharing of imagery that corresponds with those products. The updates are designed to help businesses deliver an unmatched customer experience. For example, through GDSN Major Release 3, application developers will have the most up-to-date trusted data to deliver a better shopping experience; hospitals will gain flexibility to quickly respond to market needs; and improved data sharing will enable retailers and brand owners to track products globally.

"The GDSN Major Release update was developed and launched in response to requirements from industry, business trading partners and regulatory agencies," says Malcolm Bowden, president, Global Solutions, GS1. 

"What's exciting about the GDSN Major Release 3 is it's really setting the foundation for the future of commerce. It enables the sharing of richer and more accurate product information for today's omni-channel consumer," says John Phillips,  Senior Vice President, Customer Supply Chain & Global Go-To-Market, PepsiCo. Other industry leaders are also praising the competitive advantages that the GDSN Major Release 3 update brings. "We are going to have more opportunities, more speed and changes, more local approach," says Vincent De Hertogh of retailer Delhaize Group.

Bowden explains that the successful launch of GDSN Major Release 3 on May 26 was the result of impressive collaboration and dynamic planning amongst all the parties impacted by the update. This includes the data pool community that supports GDSN, GS1 Member Organizations, businesses that directly manage their own GDSN-activities and many other trading partners throughout the global supply chain.

The first company in the world to have sent "live" trade item information according to the new GDSN Major Release 3 standard was fresh salmon Swedish manufacturer Leröy Sverige AB. Ann-Christin Nilsson, Marketing and Sales Coordinator of the company said: "we are very proud of this achievement which could not have happened without the great collaboration with GS1 Sweden."

With a successful launch completed, GS1 will continue to monitor, communicate and collaborate with the GDSN community to gather feedback and inform about future updates to the GDSN. 

About GS1 
GS1 is a neutral, not-for-profit, global organization that develops and maintains the most widely used supply chain standards system in the world. GS1 standards improve the efficiency, safety and visibility of supply chains across multiple sectors. With local Member Organizations in over 110 countries, GS1 engages with communities of trading partners, industry organizations, governments and technology providers to understand and respond to their business needs through the adoption and implementation of global standards. GS1 is driven by over a million user companies, which execute more than six billion transactions daily in 150 countries using GS1 standards. For more information, go to http://www.gs1.org

SOURCE GS1 US

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