Via a new move on the Windows Live front, Microsoft is placing its instant messaging service firmly at the center of the social networking universe. The Redmond company's Windows Live Messenger is already on the top of the world in terms of audience, and Microsoft aims to solidify its position with a landmark deal involving Bebo, Hi5, Tagged, LinkedIn and Facebook. The Redmond giant explained that the move was motivated by the need to support data portability, as well as put end users in control of their information.

"Microsoft has partnered with some of the world's top social networks on contact data portability. We will be working with Facebook, Bebo, Hi5, Tagged and LinkedIn to exchange functionally-similar Contacts APIs, allowing us to create a safe, secure two-way street for users to move their relationships between our respective services. Along with these collaborations, Microsoft is introducing a new website at www.invite2messenger.net that people can visit to invite their friends from our partner social networks to join their Windows Live Messenger contact list," stated John Richards, Director of Windows Live Platform.

What this means is that members of the Facebook, Bebo, Hi5, LinkedIn and Tagged websites will be able to invite their friends on the Windows Live Messenger contact list to join their social network. This will be possible through the use of the Windows Live Contacts API by the networks enumerated above. Facebook and Bebo users will be able to do so immediately, while Hi5, Tagged and LinkedIn members will still have to wait for a few more months. At the same time, through the invite2messenger.net website, social network friends can be invited to join Windows Live Messenger contact lists, in what Microsoft described as "a two-way street for people to share their information."

"In completing this two-way street, both Windows Live and our partners have paid special attention to relationship context and privacy management in order to create the best possible user experience. We understand that just because people have a friend relationship with a contact on one social network, that doesn't necessarily mean that they want that same relationship on another network. To preserve the context of the relationship, we are requiring that relationships be re-established in each experience with permission from the friend or contact, rather than automatically storing the data," Richards added.

Windows Live Messenger 8.5 is available for download here.