SEATTLE: Microsoft Corporation has launched an e-mail service for colleges as part of its attempt to promote its Windows Live service in campuses. As many as 72 colleges worldwide have subscribed to the service, Windows Live@edu and the company said it is talking to 200 colleges more.
In essence, these colleges are outsourcing their e-mail service operations to Microsoft, which, with its Windows Live platform, is undertaking the task virtually free.
The service allows the students to retain their existing e-mail addresses but use Windows Live Mail as the client. They will also get the familiar Hotmail interface.
The software major wants to make its Windows Live suite of service popular among the students community and also retain their loyalty. It has made arrangements to block advertisements as long as the service is used by students, even though Windows Live@edu is basically an advertisement supported service. The company will have the discretion to open up the service for advertisements once a student graduates and continues to use the service.
Microsoft feels that "catching 'em young" would make them adopt the services for life as they start using simple e-mail service and move over to a Messenger account and then participate in blog discussions.
Microsoft has the infrastructure in place to provide the service as Windows Live is a platform that the company claims is a one-stop shop for all the company's web-based services.
The company intends to move several of its other services to the platform and aggregate all these at the Windows Live website.
Google has already got a Gmail service running for the students of San Jose City College, California.
Microsoft says its Windows Live@edu service will had additional features and conveniences and it will be easier for the college IT administrators to control and manage the institution's network's directory.
