Microsoft makes OneCare free for some
C|Net | at | by Mike
As Microsoft prepares to roll out its Windows Live OneCare security product, it is offering some people the $49.95-a-year service for free.
On Tuesday, Microsoft sent e-mail invitations to a select number of people who have been testing OneCare, asking them to join a "perpetual beta." These people get to use the service at no cost and will have early access to new features, said Brooke Richardson, a lead product manager at Microsoft.
"They do not have to pay for the service, but we ask them to give us feedback," she said. "We expect it will be a small number of our users, less than 1 percent of our user base, that we will ask to stay in this perpetual beta." That would be hundreds or thousands of users, Richardson said.