WinInsider

AT&T asked a jury to award at least $90 million in damages from Microsoft as a patent dispute over technology to speed Internet transmission of human voices went to trial in New York.

Microsoft contends that it licensed the technology through Intel and other companies. The Redmond company holds more than 3,000 patents and "respects the patent rights of others," Microsoft lawyer Dale Heist told jurors.

Microsoft is working on security technologies for the upcoming Longhorn release of Windows that will protect users against security threats by monitoring system and network behavior as well as the security patches that Microsoft has issued.

The new technologies will allow Windows to detect irregular system behavior -- in terms of network traffic, memory usage and system calls, for example -- and respond to them automatically, Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates said in a presentation at the RSA Conference in San Francisco Tuesday.

Microsoft announced partnerships with 20 companies to secure digital information from unauthorized use employing so-called rights management technology. Microsoft will work with third party companies including nCipher PLC and Liquid Machines Inc. to secure files such as e-mail and word processing documents regardless of where they are stored, using rights management features and tools in Windows Server 2003, Microsoft Office 2003 and Microsoft Internet Security Acceleration (ISA) Server, the company said.

Microsoft on Wednesday introduced Microsoft ASP .Net Resource Kit, which provides additional tools and resources for developers building Web applications. ASP.NET migration guides also were released.

The kit features new controls and components, discounts on ASP.NET, and deals on ASP.NET Web hosting, the company said. Additionally, the kit includes ASP.NET Web Matrix, which is a free tool to build ASP.NET applications, and ASP.NET Starter Kits, which is a set of five pre-built applications with source code.

The European Commission will discuss its draft negative antitrust ruling against Microsoft with national competition regulators from the 15 European Union (EU) countries on March 15, a diplomat close to one national regulator said Wednesday.

A second meeting will be convened within a week to discuss what remedies to impose on Microsoft to prevent it from continuing to break EU antitrust laws. The second gathering of the so-called advisory committee will also discuss how much to fine the company.

Advanced Micro Devices is promoting computer security through processor design. The chipmaker on Wednesday announced that it has included a feature inside its Athlon 64 and Opteron processors for PCs and servers that will help combat certain computer viruses and worms. The feature, which will work in concert with Microsoft's Windows XP operating system, will be switched on later this year when Microsoft releases its Service Pack 2 update for the OS.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates predicted the demise of the traditional password because it cannot "meet the challenge" of keeping critical information secure. Gates, speaking at the RSA Security conference here on Tuesday, said: "There is no doubt that over time, people are going to rely less and less on passwords. People use the same password on different systems, they write them down and they just don't meet the challenge for anything you really want to secure."

Flash memory maker M-Systems announced on Wednesday that it has signed a contract to provide storage products for future versions of the Xbox, bolstering speculation that Microsoft may ditch the game console's hard drive.

M-Systems, best known for its DiskOnKey line of flash drives, which attach to a PC's Universal Serial Bus port, said in a statement that it has signed an agreement with Microsoft to develop "customized memory units for future Xbox products and services."

VeriSign is working with Microsoft to provide authentication services that combine Microsoft Windows Server 2003 with VeriSign's authentication services. The companies are expected to unveil the partnership on Wednesday during a keynote speech by VeriSign Chairman and CEO Stratton Sclavos at the RSA Conference in San Francisco.

Plans call for the service to allow seamless provisioning of desktop PKI credentials to include additional strong credentials, such as one-time password (OTP) tokens, PKI tokens, smart cards and desktop PKI. The service also will allow network administrators to use Microsoft Active Directory to manage users and Microsoft Management Console to provision credentials.

Rick Devenuti became vice president of worldwide services at Microsoft last November. Before taking the reins of the services group, which includes Microsoft Consulting Services, Devenuti served as Microsoft's CIO, a title he has retained. In his first press interview since assuming his new role, Devenuti discusses via e-mail with CRN Industry Editor Barbara Darrow, Microsoft Consulting Services' relationship with channel partners and its business strategy.