Microsoft's entrance to spark corporate IM
InfoWorld | at | by Mike
Riding a tide of desktop domination, Microsoft's latest foray into presence is expected to kick-start corporate adoption of IM. Lateness to market, however, has analysts skeptical as to how the offering will compete against those of longtime collaboration players such as IBM.
Office Live Communications Server 2003 -- code-named Greenwich and previously known as Real Time Communications Server -- was released to manufacturing last week. Microsoft sees the product's delivery, slated for six to eight weeks, as a "key moment" in establishing IM as a business tool, said Ed Simnett, lead product manager at Microsoft.