The Color Light Output specification provides projector buyers the advantage of a standard, objective metric with which to make product comparisons and selections.
The Color Light Output metric complements existing specifications to give buyers an accurate way to evaluate competing projector models more thoroughly.
In 2009, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) issued a scientific paper stating that in addition to the typical white light brightness rating of display devices, there was a need for providing "an equivalent measurement that will better describe a projector's color performance when rendering full color imagery".
The Color Light Output standard was developed after the SID conducted comprehensive research and performance evaluations and concluded that a color performance standard was scientifically valid and relevant for the display industry.
[2] which was developed in collaboration with SID's affiliated organizations: the International Committee for Display Metrology (ICDM) and the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA).