New Exchange coming next year (or the year after)

After earlier stating that the next version of its Exchange Server was coming in 2006, Microsoft is back to saying it could be until 2007 before the e-mail server software debuts.

In a roadmap slide presented on Tuesday at its IT Forum in Barcelona, Microsoft listed Exchange Server "12" as due in "Late 2006/Early 2007," according to Windows enthusiast Steven Bink. In a March speech in San Francisco, corporate VP Andy Lees had said the software would arrive sometime next year .

Microsoft also presented a demo of using a phone to call into an Exchange 12 server, which Bink described as "super cool." He pledged to post video and audio soon.

The company also noted that Exchange 12, like several other upcoming software releases, will be 64-bit only. Exchange 12 is also slated to handle voice mail and faxes, according to earlier statements by Microsoft.