Middleware is hub-and-spoke software that lets retirement plan recordkeepers and life insurers talk to each other. Steve McCoy of iJoin, a provider of managed account user interfaces, and Bill Mueller of IPX, a middleware provider, talk about their ventures with annuity issuers.

By bundling a deferred income annuity with a managed payout program, T. Rowe Price's optional 'out-of-plan' 401(k) income tool aims to boost participants' spending power in retirement by as much as 50%, relative to a managed payout program with no annuity.

To educate participants, JPMAM's ‘My Retirement Income Planner,' an online tool for 401(k) participants, will help them decide whether to cover 25% of their plan savings with an Equitable or Prudential lifetime income guarantee at retirement.