GDSN History
Retail data synchronization has gone through many changes as various entities seeking standardization have evolved and come to share common goals and methods with regard to global data synchronization efforts.
For a quick look at the major organizations and initiatives in data synchronization today, please refer to the table below.
| Organization | Formed | Became | When |
| UPCC Uniform Product Code Council |
1974 | UCC | 1984 |
| UCC Uniform Council Code |
1984 | GS1 US | 2005 |
| EAN International EAN Article Numbering |
1977 | GS1 | 2003 |
| ECCC Electronic Commerce Council of Canada |
1997 | GS1 Canada | 2005 |
| Initiative | Formed/Announced | Administered By | Description |
|
VICS-EDI |
1986 | GS1 US |
Handles maintenance & fine tuning of VICS standards used by the general merchandise retail industry. |
|
Sunrise 2005 |
1997 |
GS1 US |
Industry initiative of US & Canadian companies to be capable of scanning and processing EAN-8 Symbols, EAN-13 Symbols, and 12-digit U.P.C. Symbols at the point-of-sale by January 1, 2005. |
|
EAN.UCC System |
1990 |
GS1 US & GS1 |
Internationally accepted method of identifying products, serializing shipping containers & communicating other business transaction data. |
|
GCI |
1999 |
GCI Executive Board / Global Steering Group |
Unifying force that brings manufacturers & retailers together on a worldwide parity basis to simplify & enhance global commerce & improve consumer value in the overall retail supply chain. |
|
GDSN |
2004 |
GS1 |
Distributed system of independent, interoperable data pools connected to the GS1 Global Registry that enables retailers and suppliers to efficiently exchange accurate, real-time supply chain data. |
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