Vista Desktop and Group Policy

I have a network of mainly XP Pro PCs running in an Active Directory (Windows
2003 Server) environment.

Users desktops are defined by group policy (and active desktop) to provide a
'coporate' look across the network. The default login screen for each PC is
also set by a group policy screen (depending on the location) by setting the
registry key HKEY_USERS\.Default\Control Panel\Desktop\Wallpaper.

Some users also receive reminders and links to Email etc on their desktop by
using a desktop created on a local Web server using HTML and ASP onto their
active desktop (again set by group policy)

My question is , with Vista removing Active Desktop, does this mean I now
have no way at all of 'pushing' out a coporate desktop and using active
content? I've looked into the sidebar and gadgets which doesn't work with ASP
content and doesn't allow control over desktops.

I know Active Desktop was disliked, but in a networked environment it was
ideal for setting a fixed desktop and preventing users from changing it.
Active Desktop has been supported since Windows 98 and its frustrating that
it has completely disappeared with Vista!