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The program, dubbed BizSpark, targets early stage start-ups which have been operating for less than three years and have revenues under $1 million.

Companies have to be recommended through a Microsoft partner, but once in they're granted access to technology such as SQL Server Enterprise and Windows Server 2008, as well as free marketing and technical support.

Once the three years end these businesses will either be able to switch to other software, or sign up to a Microsoft licensing program to continue using the technology.

The benefits for Microsoft are obvious. It allows the Redmond giant to lock companies into its software early, creating new customers when the three-year period ends.

BizSpark also reduces the threat that new companies will follow the increasingly attractive open-source option.

"The cost of software is a significant investment even for a well-established company... a program like this erases the biggest barrier between a true enterprise software suite like Microsoft offers, versus an open source or other technology," says Nick Ganju, CTO of ZocDoc, one of the start-ups rolled out by Microsoft at the launch.