How?

So web services provide a loose coupling, a bunch of other desirable features, yadda yadda yadda.

Web services use XML to exchange messages. So what? How do you know the other side will understand them? Isn't this just some new proprietary technology?

No, it's SOAP.

WHAT
whit
whip
ship
snip
snap
SOAP

So, what is SOAP anyway?