Microsoft's Belgian subsidiary has launched an electronic-ID card pilot program, and is looking to integrate authentication for eID cards into future versions of the MSN Messenger instant-messaging service.

Microsoft Belgium on Monday announced a new Electronic ID (eID) Early Adopter program. Under the program, Microsoft will be working with local software vendors to develop eID-based applications. Microsoft's MSN division will develop one such application — an authentication service for MSN, according to Microsoft officials.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates made the announcement along with the Minister of IT in Belgium, in front of an audience of government and IT officials on Monday.

Information on MSN's work with the Belgian government around e-ID cards was first reported by the www.mess.be Web site.

The government of Belgium is engaged in a program to equip all citizens over age 12 with an eID card. According to the Mess.be site, the new eID card will replace traditional ID cards for 8 million Belgian citizens by December 31, 2009. Mess.be says the new eID cards will include photos, names, nationality, place and date of birth, a national ID number and a validity date, all of which will be stored electronically.

"We hope to learn from our experiences here as we incubate this project so that we can apply learnings to projects in other countries that may have or are currently finalizing their own eID plans or possibly to other products if it makes sense," said an MSN spokeswoman.

For now, the eID project is focused exclusively on MSN Messenger, and Microsoft "has no other potential applications to announce at this time," the spokeswoman said.

Mess.be reported that Microsoft also might add authentication for eID cards to future Windows releases as well.

"Using secure ID cards for Windows Messenger authentication is another step in pulling together all the different Microsoft authentication and access control technologies," said Gil Kirkpatrick, chief technology officer of NetPro, a Microsoft partner that builds security solutions around directory-management systems. "Creating an integrated identity and access control platform for Windows is crucial to securing the enterprise."

MSN officials did not offer a timeframe by which they expect to integrate the eID authentication into MSN Messenger.

Microsoft has been working on a number of projects to promote eID cards as an alternative to traditional password storage mechanisms.

At last year's RSA security conference, Gates revealed that Microsoft has been working with RSA on a Windows-specific version of the SecureID authentication system. Microsoft also has been developing smart-card-based authentication technology — also in conjunction with RSA — for internal use. And Microsoft Research has been working on tamper-resistant biometric-ID software that would enable customers to create their own secure ID cards that could be the crux of an ID-management solution.