Adobe Mars and Print-ready PDFs

Random question popped into my head whilst having a shower: does Adobe Mars, the new project to represent PDF as a packaged XML format, support PDF’s strong print/prepress heritage.

Things like CMYK, colorspaces, high-dpi images, Postscript fonts, trapping settings (overprint/knockout) and the Crop/Bleed boxes. All those high-tech printing things.

The short answer is yes.

(testing process: InDesign document, export as PDF 1.3, open in Acrobat 8 Professional, Save as “PDF in XML Format” using Mars plugins, re-open, check with Acrobat 8 Advanced>Print Production tools. Open SVG as text)