<s>
A	O
credential	B-General_Concept
service	I-General_Concept
provider	I-General_Concept
(	O
CSP	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
trusted	O
entity	O
that	O
issues	O
security	O
tokens	O
or	O
electronic	O
credentials	O
to	O
subscribers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
any	O
authentication	O
system	O
,	O
some	O
entity	O
is	O
required	O
to	O
authenticate	O
the	O
user	O
on	O
behalf	O
of	O
the	O
target	O
application	B-Application
or	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
Credential	B-General_Concept
Service	I-General_Concept
Providers	I-General_Concept
were	O
created	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
CSP	O
separates	O
those	O
functions	O
from	O
the	O
application	B-Application
or	O
service	O
and	O
typically	O
provides	O
trust	O
to	O
that	O
application	B-Application
or	O
service	O
over	O
a	O
network	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
Internet	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
CSP	O
registers	O
or	O
gives	O
the	O
subscriber	O
a	O
token	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
in	O
an	O
authentication	B-Protocol
protocol	I-Protocol
and	O
issues	O
credentials	O
as	O
needed	O
to	O
bind	O
that	O
token	O
to	O
the	O
identity	O
,	O
or	O
to	O
bind	O
the	O
identity	O
to	O
some	O
other	O
useful	O
verified	O
attribute	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
e-authentication	O
model	O
,	O
a	O
claimant	O
in	O
an	O
authentication	B-Protocol
protocol	I-Protocol
is	O
a	O
subscriber	O
to	O
some	O
CSP	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MediQuin	O
is	O
a	O
credential	B-General_Concept
service	I-General_Concept
provider	I-General_Concept
located	O
in	O
Irvine	O
,	O
California	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Below	O
is	O
a	O
table	O
that	O
shows	O
the	O
approximate	O
cost	O
for	O
a	O
Credential	B-General_Concept
Service	I-General_Concept
Provider	I-General_Concept
in	O
different	O
Categories	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
uses	O
CSP	O
to	O
implement	O
authentication	B-Protocol
protocols	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
Windows	B-Application
Vista	I-Application
,	O
a	O
new	O
authentication	O
package	O
called	O
Credential	O
Security	O
Service	O
Provider	O
(	O
CredSSP	O
)	O
was	O
introduced	O
.	O
</s>
