Microsoft Gives MSN Spaces the Windows Live Treatment

I'm no fan of TLAs (three-letter acronyms), so I will shed no tears at the ultimate demise of Microsoft's "MSN" moniker for its family of Web services. That's not to say that the new name, "Windows Live," is any more helpful in figuring out what (if anything) the various services under this umbrella term have in common. And rechristening its free MSN Spaces blogging service Windows Live Spaces doesn't do much to explain Microsoft's Live strategy.

Just last month Microsoft announced several new features for its blogging service, including the ability to add descriptions to the photos you post to make them easier for people to search for, and agreements with Kanoodle and Amazon for generating revenue by placing sponsored links in your blog posts. What does the name change have to do with these enhancements? As far as I can tell, not a darn thing.

So why the new name? Is Microsoft trying to shed its moldering MSN skin in favor of a shiny new coat of Windows Live marketing hype? Or will there actually be some real integration of the various Live services? At least for now, only the "MSN Spaces" name appears to have changed. Whether there's more change ahead, and how it will affect current and future users of the blogging service, are anybody's guess.