Microsoft to delay release of Windows .NET server software
Associated Press
REDMOND, Washington (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. (NasdaqNM:MSFT - news) said it would again delay the release of its new Windows .NET server products in part because of the software maker's added focus on security.
The set of products was scheduled to come out in the first half of this year but now will come out in the second half, Bob O'Brien, group product manager for the Windows .NET Server division, said Friday.
O'Brien said the delay mainly is to allow the company's software developers to fine tune the product's performance. But, he added, company chairman Bill Gates' directive to make sure the company's software is secure "has, of course, caused us to do a double and triple look to make sure we're getting it out right."
Gates, also Microsoft's chief software architect, told employees in mid-January the company must place top priority on security and privacy for software users -- something critics say Microsoft has ignored too long.
This is the second time the company has delayed the release of Windows .NET server, which is to replace the company's Windows 2000 server software. The product was originally scheduled to be released toward the end of last year but was delayed after the release of the latest desktop operating system software, Windows XP, was pushed back to last fall.
O'Brien said the company delayed the first time because it wanted to space the releases of the products out by several months.
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