The red-hot Web-conferencing space got a big boost on Monday, when Microsoft unveiled its new Live Meeting software. The software, Microsoft's first real attempt to enter the Web-conferencing space, appears at a time when the sector as a whole is seeing annual growth rates north of 40 percent, according to the Yankee Group.
For investors in industry leaders such as WebEx Communications and Raindance Communications, however, the arrival of Redmond's crew is a pretty tough bit of news.
Still, it's hardly a surprise: Microsoft (MSFT: Research, Estimates) bought the technology that forms the backbone of its conferencing product in January and has been making noise about entering the space ever since. This may be one of the reasons Wall Street reacted with a collective shrug upon hearing Microsoft's product announcement.
Shares of both WebEx and Raindance were up slightly on Monday, and both companies -- like most tech companies these days -- have seen their stock prices rise steadily since about April of this year, despite the impending arrival of Microsoft into the arena.
News source: CNN Money
