The Hewlett-Packard Co has thrown its weight behind Microsoft Corp’s Exchange to win the messaging and collaboration war. HP has pledged a sales force, a global marketing initiative and optimized versions of its NetServer systems to the Exchange campaign. While the company has said it will continue supporting OpenMail, clients will have to request that product by name. Otherwise, Exchange becomes HP’s messaging default. Competency centers jointly staffed by Microsoft and HP personnel have been opened in the UK and France, with more of the same planned for the US and Asia. HP also plans to hire 1,000 more Microsoft Certified Software Engineers (MCSEs) and extend its high availability NT support to Exchange environments. What does Microsoft contribute to the partnership? Well, Exchange, obviously. And that seems to be pretty much it.
