Through its new BizSpark program, Microsoft is enticing startups to build their businesses with Microsoft’s full-featured development tools—for free. Basically the BizSpark program goes like this:

To be eligible a startup must meet three requirements. It must be a private company, make less than $1 million in annual revenue and be less than three years old.

If your startup meets these requirements, then you’re eligible to be a BizSpark member. As such you’ll get a free three-year package that includes a license to Microsoft software and servers and access to professional support from “Network Partners” from around the world. (Network Partners are units like investors or university incubators that are vested in software-fueled innovation and entrepreneurship. Startups must go through these Network Partners to get involved in the BizSpark program.)

Once the three years is up, BizSpark members can either begin paying for these Microsoft resources and continue business as usual, or pay an offering fee of $100 dollars and exit the program, no strings attached.

BizSpark really is a great way for startups to catapult themselves into successful businesses. It gives entrepreneurs more resources and opportunities than most could ever harvest on their own. If you want to read more commentary, I suggest you check out TechCrunch, GigaOM or VentureBeat. They each had great write-ups on the program.

As a note of disclosure, Microsoft is a sponsor of PartnerUp.

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