Brier Dudley's Blog

Brier Dudley offers a critical look at technology and business issues affecting the Northwest.

March 17, 2008 9:32 AM

A vision of the Web services future Microsoft is developing

Here's the top of today's column, a rumination on where Microsoft's software and services strategy could lead:

"A few years from now, when you drive into a McDonald's parking lot, your dashboard computer will start beeping.

"The computer is synced to your phone, and both devices have geographic location services. They know where you are and, based on your credit-card activity, they guess you're about to order another burger and supersized fries.

"But because you've subscribed to Microsoft Personal Trainer 2015, a premium feature of the online health-management system you've been using since 2012, technology intervenes. The services are gathering information on your behalf, using a new software platform that began taking shape in 2008."

A few annotations:

Craig Mundie and Alan Alda discussing future technologies, including healthcare services

Microsoft announces HealthVault, which so far is aimed at companies and software developers interested in building applications on the platform.

Microsoft acquires Azyxxi, the foundation of Amalga, its enterprise healthcare platform launching in the first half of 2008. Among the hospitals now testing the platform: New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Johns Hopkins Health System, Novant Health, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, St. Joseph Health System and the Wisconsin Health Information Exchange. The system is also still being used at the MedStar Health network of eight hosptials in the Washington, D.C., area where Azyxxi was created.

The column also mentioned Photosynth, which you can preview here.

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