"Microsoft on Tuesday said it plans to kill off its Windows Live OneCare subscription security service in favor of a free offering that will feature a core of essential anti-malware tools while excluding peripheral services, such as PC tune up programs, found in OneCare.

The move could help the software maker extend its footprint in the low-cost PC market, but it might also catch the eye of trustbusters.

As a streamlined offering, Microsoft said the new service—presently code-named Morro—will be suitable for use on low-cost, low-powered Netbooks that are growing in popularity in emerging markets and in some segments of the North American computer market.

"This new, no-cost offering will give us the ability to protect an even greater number of consumers, especially in markets where the growth of new PC purchases is outpaced only by the growth of malware," said Amy Barzdukas, Microsoft's senior product manager for Online Services and Windows, in a statement."

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