REDMOND, Wash., May 9, 2000 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has acknowledged its submission of the latest version of the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) specification. Microsoft was joined by Ariba Inc., Commerce One Inc., Compaq Computer Corp., DevelopMentor Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co., IBM Corp., IONA Technologies PLC, Lotus Development Corp., SAP AG and Userland Software Inc. in submitting the specification and proposing the formation of a working group in the area of Extensible Markup Language (XML)-based protocols. SOAP is an open standards-based interoperability protocol that uses the W3C’s XML to provide a common messaging format to link together any applications and services anywhere on the Internet.
“We are gratified that the W3C has acknowledged our submission,”
said David Turner, Microsoft’s representative to the W3C Advisory Committee.
“We believe strongly in the need for standardized protocols to support XML messaging. The W3C is the right place for work based on XML.”
The SOAP specification is a key technology for delivering on Microsoft’s Web Services vision. It provides a common mechanism for integrating services on the Internet and intranets regardless of operating system, object model or programming language. Through its use of Internet-standard XML and HTTP, SOAP enables any new or existing applications to communicate with one another. By supporting SOAP, Web sites can become Web services that are accessible programmatically without requiring human initiation or intermediation. With a common integration fabric for direct interaction between software connected to the Internet, new opportunities abound in aggregation, federation and integration of services and devices located anywhere on the Internet.
More information about SOAP can be obtained by visiting the W3C Web site at http://www.w3.org/TR/SOAP/ and http://www.w3.org/submissions/2000/05/ or the MSDN Web site at http://msdn.microsoft.com/ .
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software – any time, any place and on any device.
