14 DAY TRIAL // Windows Live Messenger 9.0, Microsoft's forthcoming version of its instant messaging client, is showing the first signs of life. At the beginning of November the Redmond company wrapped up the evolution of its Windows Live suite of services and products, and finished up introducing Wave 2 of its cloud platform. Windows Live Messenger was one of the Windows Live puzzle pieces that fit into place in Wave 2, with Microsoft dropping version 8.5, specifically tailored for Windows Vista.
Windows Live Messenger 8.5 was leaked hours before the official release, and at this point in time it is the latest version of Microsoft's instant messaging client up for grabs. But at the same time, Windows Live continues to grow, as the company has already started cooking Wave 3 of the online suite's evolution. And Windows Live Messenger 9.0, the successor of the current version 8.5, is at the forefront of the next generation of Windows Live.
In this context, Microsoft has already begun shipping invitations to testers of Windows Live Messenger 9.0. Just a couple of weeks following the release of version 8.5, the Redmond company is inviting testers to grab a hold of early builds of Windows Live Messenger 9.0. As of now, the beta testing program for version 9.0 of the upcoming instant messaging client is a private program that involves Microsoft Connect. This means that users are locked out of test driving early builds of Windows Live Messenger 9.0 unless they receive a specific invitation from Microsoft.
With a community of approximately 300 million users worldwide, Windows Live Messenger betas are generally extremely popular, but for the time being, only previous Windows Live testers are getting invites and the chance of an early taste of the instant messaging client. According to Microsoft's Andrew Jenks, Windows Live Messenger 9.0 is planned for late 2008, early 2009, and will come to the table with a range of enhancements for a new application programming interface for developers to support for Multiple Points Of Presence, allowing for sign in from multiple devices.