Microsoft to launch cloud computing system

Microsoft has announced that it will be releasing its cloud based
computing system Azure on January 1, next year. The company plans to
take advantage of the growing interest in internet-based software and
services, according to Reuters.

Azure provides an online platform for software developers to create
their own programs, and space for customers to store data. The service
was rolled out for experimentation a year ago.

The announcement was made by Microsoft's Chief Software Architect, Ray
Ozzie in the company's annual software developers conference.

Microsoft is expected to be a big player in the cloud computing market
- broadly the trend toward running software in remote datacenters and
accessing it over the Internet - but has lagged behind pioneering
rivals such as Amazon.com, which already sells cloud-based storage, and
Google, which offers a range of free, online software.

The first month of the service will be free, and billing will start in February, said Ozzie.