Mary Jo Foley reports on ZDNET that Microsoft is rolling out a number of new feature additions to its Microsoft-hosted family of “Online” services, including POP e-mail compatibility and better support for Mac clients. Microsoft’s Online family currently includes Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Communications Online, Live Meeting and the Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS). All of these services are hosted by Microsoft (but not currently running on its Azure cloud operating system).

With the October Service Update, Exchange Online users get support for POP-based clients. Previously, Exchange Online supported only Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 and 2007, the Online Services blog post acknowledged.

This month’s update also includes “several enhancements that will provide a more efficient communication and collaboration experience for organizations with Mac users,” according to the post.

Microsoft is making the sign-in client for Mac available for download from the Microsoft Download Center in November.

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