After investing significantly in technology for radio frequency identification devices, Microsoft is readying its first major product, a software package designed to help companies manage the product tagging technology.

Microsoft plans early next year to release the RFID Services Platform, a "middleware" product that connects the hardware that monitors RFID signals with the business software that can make sense of the information. The product is designed for businesses that want to incorporate RFID into their own systems, as well as for other software companies that want to build a product based on Microsoft's technology. The RFID product will be built on top of Microsoft's .Net development platform and will run on a two-processor server, Microsoft RFID program manager Alex Renz told CNET News.com on Tuesday. It will also incorporate the company's SQL Server database software for information storage. Renz did not disclose pricing for the product but noted that Microsoft wants to be a low-cost option in a market that is already seeing prices come down. "We are going to make sure that it is not going to break the bank," he said.