It's a long-term strategy -- D'uh!

Hate Verisign! Like the evil empire (no, not Microsoft), they control the Internet and do bad things for their own welfare. [Shock! Horror! Indignation!! ed.] Sitefinder, the controversial search service, is an example of Verisign using its privileged position in a way that competitors and many other freedom fighters find offensive. I'm still unsure what I think. Now, there's more news in the digital ID space from Verisign in this CNET item: VeriSign works to ID kid surfers

In short, Verisign and a partner (i-Safe) are going to issue ID tokens to school kids to keep them safe as they surf the Internet: no charge to the school or the kid. Business model (read: way to make money) will probably involve the vendors and advertisers that want to access that market paying a fee so the tokens will permit the kids to access their wares or somesuch. Whatever. That's the small end of the stick.

More significant is that "leettle girls [and boys] get beegehr heveryday." In other words, it's a long-term strategy of conditioning the kids so that they're used to the idea and 5 - 10 years from now use a digital ID as a matter of course rather than resisting for privacy or other concerns; of using this market as the bait to bring online merchants and advertisers (with the money) to play and pay for the game; of using the kids' safety as a showcase for the parents (who really have the economic power and are the market the vendors really want) to buy into the consumer-based digital ID program for themselves; of . . . And, Verisign is willing to invest big money (maybe -- we don't know who's all investing) to make it all happen with limited reward potential in the immediate future.

Let's recall that Verisign has had as little luck with its consumer PKI programs (certificates) as anyone else; that they probably see the enormous commercial potential and value in being the consumer identity provider in a networked world that will run on identity within 5 - 10 years; that they can do it. Hat off to them.

If their foray is successful, and there's no way of telling that for at least a few years, they will put the lie to the belief that there are trusted parties (say post offices, governments, etc.) that can do this and others (e.g., Verisign) that can't. What's next: Microsoft Passport redux?

Posted by Grayson at February 11, 2004 09:15 AM