Microsoft to Phase Out NetMeeting

Published on December 2, 2003 By Black Xero In WinCustomize News

After six years of service, Microsoft is officially retiring its NetMeeting conferencing software. Instead, the company's Office Live Meeting software, based upon PlaceWare, will fill the void left by the gradual phase out of NetMeeting.

Currently, both MSN and Windows Messenger utilize NetMeeting technology to power application and whiteboard sharing. Development is indefinitely frozen, however, and Microsoft's IM clients will be migrated to drive Live Meeting services.

A Microsoft spokesperson told, "NetMeeting is still supported and available with current editions of Windows although there will not be any new versions of NetMeeting."

"Microsoft believes that NetMeeting provides customer value in certain scenarios, and that Live Meeting will be a compelling complementary service in many situations," the spokesperson said. "Moving forward, it is expected that all future innovations will come within the LCS, Live Meeting and Windows Messenger technologies."

Despite the advent of richer whiteboard clients and the near ubiquity of instant messaging, NetMeeting remains an integral part of many organizations' IT infrastructures. According to the product's Web site, customers ranging from Boeing, to Ford, to the United States Navy make use of NetMeeting for real time communications and collaborative tasks.

A Microsoft case study reads, "The United States Navy solved worldwide equipment maintenance and repair issues by creating a TeleMaintenance service using Microsoft NetMeeting, which provides real-time multimedia communications to enable the Shore Support Infrastructure to resolve more repairs without having to send for a 'tech assist.'"

Throughout its product lifespan, NetMeeting has shipped as free component of Windows, but Live Meeting will not carry on the torch. Microsoft is now offering a free 30-day trial of Live Meeting, but the software is otherwise priced per seat.

(Reported By WinBeta)

Comments

[brazen weep]

on Dec 02, 2003

Doh! It's too bad NetMeeting itself wasn't ever upgraded to include Messenger and the like. Netmeeting was very cool, and relatively easy to use (even control from a programming standpoint). It's too bad NetMeeting will now go the way of Microsoft Bob.

Not cool.

DesignCaddy

on Dec 02, 2003

damn them. netmeeting is great - theres a bunch of us who run it under compatability mode just to make it work in XP, 'cause MSN and Windows Messanger are buggy when it comes to video conferening and whiteboard. and you can't beat program control

i'm gonna miss it.

delldude

on Dec 02, 2003

Well...it didn't look that bad until the end of the article. After all change IS an inevitable part of life, but the last 2 sentences sum up Microsoft's philisophy: Greed.

"Throughout its product lifespan, NetMeeting has shipped as free component of Windows, but Live Meeting will not carry on the torch. Microsoft is now offering a free 30-day trial of Live Meeting, but the software is otherwise priced per seat."

Microsoft probably buried it on purpose so they could bring out their "pay per seat" version and try to capitalize on NetMeeting's success in the Fortune 50, 100 & 500 business world....

DesignCaddy

on Dec 03, 2003

now, i'm not sure if it is or not, but if livemeeting would be something included with OFFICE - the world would be a much better place. that would give a reason for pc to mac compatability, which is hard to find for video conferencing. it would also gaurantee most of the world has it.

[brazen weep]

on Dec 03, 2003

all the more reason to charge your a$$ for it separately, in the mind of M$.

bakerstreet

on Dec 03, 2003

I didn't mind Netmeeting, but it was really, really annoying as a Windows 2000 user that it was very difficult to uninstall. Same with Outlook express ( http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;257761 ). WFP automagically restores them even when you use the install disk, and shutting down WFP after service pack 1 requires 'unorthadox' methods.

They don't take up much space, but any accessable exe is a possible source of exploit, and if I don't use it, I oughtta be able to uninstall it completely. I hate clicking a button on a theme and having it launch Outlook Express.

I'd rather see them target these things for folks who need them than impose them on all of us. I didn't use it, though, so my perspective is biased.

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