* Microsoft unwilling to support third-party sites
The big identity story over the end of year holidays was the announcement by eBay that it would no longer use Microsoft’s Passport for authentication services but would instead require users to remember their usernames and passwords. This is being painted as a major blow to Microsoft (“eBay deals setback to Microsoft Passport” and “eBay brings down the hammer on Microsoft Passport” were just two of the headlines). But there are two points to consider before deciding that Microsoft was the loser in this deal.
1) Microsoft had already decided to phase out Passport for third party authorizations. This has been generally known since last fall. Redmond would keep the simplified logoin technology in place for its own Web sites (Hotmail, MSN and the like) but would no longer push others to support it.
2) With this move, eBay is actually making it harder for its customers to log on to the auction leader’s Web site. Remember that Passport wasn’t required by eBay, it was an option for those who wished to use it. Few vendors will be found who would say that making it harder for clients to reach you is a way to improve your bottom line cash flow.
My feeling is that Microsoft, no longer willing to support clients of third party sites, quietly let it be known that Passport should go away.
Since eBay is one of the most visited sites on the Web, though, and since it posted a notice about Passport on its front page, it got a lot of attention. However, the single sentence (“In late January, we will no longer support the ability for members to sign in to eBay through Microsoft Passport”) with no further explanation left room for lots of speculation. And for most trade rags, as well as general press, evidence that Microsoft is slipping is what sells papers. Still, if anyone from Microsoft or eBay has anything further to say, my inbox is waiting.
