Microsoft, McAfee forge .NET alliance

Microsoft Corp. and antivirus and security firm McAfee.com Corp. announced an alliance Tuesday that will see McAfee incorporate some of Microsoft's .NET technologies into its offerings and also support Microsoft's suite of "Hailstorm" services, which are tied to .NET.

McAfee will soon launch a new security service that will take advantage of Microsoft's Passport to allow for a single log-on and registration across multiple Web sites, the companies said in a news release. Additionally, by using Hailstorm services, McAfee will be able to automatically notify its customers about virus warnings and software updates and display those notifications on multiple devices, the release said.

Hailstorm is the code-name for a set of .NET-related services based on XML (extensible markup language) that will store user data and deliver it to multiple platforms, including desktop and wireless devices. .NET is Microsoft's next generation initiative that will more fully integrate the Web and XML into applications, which the company is betting on heavily.

Under the terms of the deal between Microsoft and McAfee, the companies will cooperate on implementing .NET technologies and servers within McAfee's online services, as well as joint marketing and promotional efforts. The companies will also work together on future .NET offerings.d on the Web at http://www.mcafee.com/.