Cameron, great post, I think you hit the nail on the head about the larger issue of sustainable shared infrastructure. I'm curious if you think that trends in open source software can be a guide here or if they are just a red herring. The part about diverse and frequently opposed interests working to realize a common need in ORCID reminded me a lot about Wired's story on the history of OpenStack: http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2012/04/openstack/ . It is at least an interesting case study of challenges and success in collaborating on infrastructure from start-ups, established industry, and public sector.