Microsoft pours $50M into Forefront security line
eWeek | at | by Mike
Microsoft is spending another $50 million to pump up sales, marketing, training and other support for its Forefront line of security products, the company announced July 11 at its Worldwide Partner Conference in Denver. It's also expanding eligibility so that more partners can take advantage of the up to 30 percent additional fees that they can receive through its Security Software Advisor program.
Forefront is Microsoft's battering ram when it comes to breaking into the enterprise security market. When the Redmond, Wash. company launched the first pieces of Forefront Dec. 8, analysts such as Gartner's John Pescatore predicted that Microsoft's entrance into the market would not only cause pricing pressure, but would also give industry stalwarts like McAfee and Symantec a swift kick in the pants, innovation-wise.