Third in line behind Microsoft and Google to support an open-standards initiative, Yahoo! has announced that it will back OpenID. This new Internet standard enables web identity consolidation and a common log-in across websites. OpenID accounts increased to 368 million after adding 248 million Yahoo! users. Through OpenID, users can use their Yahoo! log-in and password to access an OpenID, non-Yahoo! site. Yahoo!'s influence is extended as a side effect of open-standards information sharing. OpenID also needed a trusted name like Yahoo! to endorse an industry standard and drive usage. The chairman of the non-profit OpenID Foundation forecasted more websites will register with OpenID for the chance to access Yahoo!'s 'vast international user base'. Yahoo! CEO Jerry Yang pledged that the company will 'yodel' again despite past poor performance and decreased marketshare compared with Google. Microsoft tried its own unified log-in service in 1999 with Microsoft Passport, renamed Windows Live ID. It never caught on outside of Microsoft's proprietary websites. Google is currently leading an open-standards initiative for social networking sites called OpenSocial, and another for the cellphone industry called the Open Handset Alliance. Yahoo!'s director of platforms and infrastructure describes freedom from multiple user names and passwords, and one trusted partner to manage the user's online identity. Created by blog developer Brad Fitzpatrick, OpenID is being developed by many different companies and individuals using open-source principles. Fitzpatrick believes that open-source technology belongs to everyone and no one can claim ownership. The market's reaction to Yahoo!'s announcement is positive regarding functionality, but apprehensive about open-standards security against hackers on the existing Web 2.0 platform.