Microsoft is setting itself up as a one-man band for subscriptions and services based on its Windows Media technology as part of a highly anticipated upgrade due next month, according to people familiar with the product. The Windows Media Player 9, which goes into public beta, or test, on Sept. 4, adds a new "Services" tab that initially allows consumers to sign up for a trial subscription to Pressplay, an online music service backed by Sony and Vivendi Universal. The move is part of Microsoft's increased emphasis on Web services and also an attempt to compete against similar offerings from rivals AOL Time Warner and RealNetworks, which are partners in a competing music service known as MusicNet.

"The notion of tying services in with Microsoft technologies is not a new thing," said Jupiter analyst Michael Gartenberg. "We first saw that in things like the 'My Pictures' folder in Windows XP that offered to send you to partner sites for photo reprints and the like." The linking emphasizes the status of Windows as "valuable real estate that Microsoft controls and can use to leverage relationships," Gartenberg said.