The SyncML Initiative, Ltd. was a non-profit corporation formed by a group of companies who co-operated to produce an open standard

Open standard

An open standard is a standard that is publicly available and has various rights to use associated with it, and may also have various properties of how it was designed . There is no single definition and interpretations vary with usage....

 for data synchronization

Data synchronization

Data synchronization is the process of establishing consistency among data from a source to a target data storage and vice versa and the continuous harmonization of the data over time. It is fundamental to a wide variety of applications, including file synchronization and mobile device...

 and device management.

Prior to SyncML

SyncML

SyncML is the former name for a platform-independent information synchronization standard. The project is currently referred to as Open Mobile Alliance Data Synchronization and Device Management...

, data synchronization and device management had been based on a set of different, proprietary protocol

Proprietary protocol

In telecommunications, a proprietary protocol is a communications protocol owned by a single organization or individual.-Enforcement:Proprietors may enforce restrictions through patents and by keeping the protocol specification a trade secret...

s, each functioning only with a limited number of devices, systems and data types.

The SyncML Initiative, Ltd. consolidated into the Open Mobile Alliance

Open Mobile Alliance

The Open Mobile Alliance is a standards body which develops open standards for the mobile phone industry.- Principles :Mission: To provide interoperable service enablers working across countries, operators and mobile terminals....

 (OMA) in 2002, contributing their technical work to the OMA technical Working Groups: Device Management Working Group and Data Synchronization Working Group. The SyncML legacy specifications were converted to the OMA format with the 1.2.2 versions of OMA SyncML, OMA Data Synchronization and OMA Device Management

OMA Device Management

OMA Device Management is a device management protocol specified by the Open Mobile Alliance Device Management Working Group and the Data Synchronization Working Group...

specifications.