What's Federated Identity Management (FIM)? Actually, we should be asking how important is FIM. It's the linchpin of digital convergence and probably one of the most important technologies of the modern era. Soon, we will begin to swim in digital television, multifunctional phones, devices of all kinds, and at the core of making all these things work together with our computer networks and the Internet lies identity management. At the core of identity management lies federation.

People use FIM to refer to a system that allows individuals to use the same user name, password or other personal identification to sign on to the networks of more than one enterprise in order to conduct transactions. You might see it referred to as single sign-on (SSO).