Microsoft unveils next-stage .Net

NEWS Microsoft unveiled more details yesterday of a new .Net initiative designed to allow businesses to securely exchange user identities and information across the internet. Called TrustBridge, the software will be built on the WS-Security standard currently being developed by Microsoft, IBM and Verisign. However, Microsoft said the new system was only designed to facilitate the exchange of information between different parties running Microsoft's XP operating system. Microsoft said yesterday the new initiative was designed to "federate" trust between companies across the internet. It also announced further developments to its controversial Passport user authentication engine, which will support SOAP, WS-Security and TrustBridge. In some quarters the initiative is being seen in opposition to the Sun Microsystems-led Liberty Alliance, which is designed to develop open ways of managing identity securely across the web. Microsoft said the first TrustBridge products would be available in 2003.