The latest development of Microsoft's COM, the foundation that supported OLE. By adding network capabilities (and so creating DCOM, or Distributed COM) and by reducing the scope of OLE to create ActiveX, Microsoft has created a comprehensive set of component-based Internet- and intranet-oriented applications.
In an attempt to promote ActiveX as a standard, in 1996 Microsoft turned over control of ActiveX to the Open Group to manage future developments.
See also ActiveX control; Distributed Component Object Model; Java.