Despite limited success in the audio marketplace in recent years, Microsoft has stated that it still believes "music is an important area" for the software-led company.
Speaking to British paper The Telegraph, executive producer of MSN Peter Bale suggests that the Redmond-based company will soon be launching a music streaming service that follows the increasingly popular trend set by existing solutions such as Spotify and We7 - both of which could soon influence the charts.
"We are looking at launching a music streaming service imminently," said Bale, adding that "It will be a similar principle to Spotify but we are still examining how the business model will work".
Music streaming, seen by many as a logical alternative or successor to purchasing physical media, allows for users to access music for free or via subscription. For example, Spotify - a leading music streaming service - allows users to register and stream unlimited music for free, with revenue generated from ads. The service also offers ad-free subscription options, priced at 99p per day or £9.99 per month.
Although Microsoft is yet to determine its own business model, it has hinted at integration with its Xbox 360 games console and Zune portable media player.
A music streaming service may become the latest Microsoft offensive against Apple's hugely-popular iTunes, but will it be a success? In recent years, Microsoft's MSN Music store has faded into memory and its Zune media player continues to struggle to gain traction against Apple's iPod.
