As part of yesterday’s announcement of Exchange Online and SharePoint Online availability in the U.S., Microsoft also announced that it is planning to offer a Microsoft Online Services solution that will provide IT management and security capabilities for businesses.  Slated for delivery in calendar year 2010, these new offerings will enable IT managers to secure and manage desktops using Web-based subscription services. These management and security online services will be based on components from existing systems management, identity and security offerings, and will complement Microsoft’s on-premise solutions.  They will provide customers with more choice and flexibility, as they begin to adopt cloud-based computing to address specific needs.  To deliver these new IT management and security services, Microsoft is building on a proven and highly scalable services infrastructure that serves hundreds of millions of customers every month.

The virtual press kit from yesterday’s event is located here: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/Officesoftwareplusservices/default.mspx