Microsoft enters Wireless Networking
eWeek | at | by Mike
Microsoft Corp. this week will enter the wireless networking hardware business with a series of new products aimed at small businesses and consumers. The products include wireless Ethernet ports as well as notebook and PCI adapters, according to sources close to the Redmond, Wash., company, who said that there wasn't much to differentiate the products from existing networking products except the Microsoft name and Microsoft's role in simplifying wireless security configuration.
Industry observers already are assuming that the hardware line is an avenue to sell the company's MSN Broadband services. Several high-speed Internet providers currently offer wireless hardware in their service packages, most often through partnerships with wireless LAN equipment manufacturer Linksys Group Inc.