This is an important step in Microsoft's software plus services" strategy. You hear a lot about SaaS for consumers, but this one is for the enterprise. Microsoft launched online enterprise services around Exchange, SharePoint and Communications Server and introduced a free document storage and collaboration Web site. The newly branded Online services had been offered as part of Microsoft Managed Services, launched three years ago as an incubator for providing hosted services to companies with more than 5,000 users. In addition to the Online brand on enterprise services, Microsoft is designating a Live brand of online tools, the first being a beta version of Office Live Workspace. Microsoft officials would not comment on the final release of Workspace, which is a free online site where users can store as many as 1,000 documents that can be shared with other users. Those documents can be created using any text editors, but Workspace will include special features that work with Office applications.

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