The home networking industry continues to experiment with new features and standards. The newest and fastest equipment for home networking is called 802.11g, an upgrade from 802.11b. However, Microsoft in March 2005 announced that it would support the new 801.11i standard in its Longhorn operating system, which is scheduled to launch in 2006. The software company is expected to provide several home networking features in Longhorn.

According to Techweb.com, Jawad Khaki, Microsoft’s vice president for networking, said in a 2005 online chat that the company’s focus is “to enable effortless secure networks that will support state-of-the-art technologies to enable new experiences in the home—things like streaming of audio-video media streams for entertainment and real-time communications.”

The Universal Powerline Association, a trade group, is working with several industry companies to develop a new “Digital Home Standard” for power line networks. The new standard, which should be released in the second quarter of 2005, will be used to design integrated circuits for voice, video and data distribution, including multi-stream entertainment for high-definition TV and “Triple Play” services.