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Having announced it would embrace third-party developers on Xbox Live (part of a ripple effect across major console brands), Microsoft has pledged to be more liberal with information about its top products, reports ITPro.

The commitment is a move toward greater interoperability.

Being "open" is a stance that rival Google has always taken. It regularly releases APIs, for example, to popular products like Google Maps.

Following suit, Microsoft plans to publish APIs of all "high volume" products.

It will also:

• Share 30,000 pages of documentation for Windows client and server protocols
• Create APIs for Microsoft Office that enable developers to plug in additional formats
• Commit not to sue open-source developers for development of protocols

Microsoft is renowned in the open source community for its lawsuit threats and partner-for-protection clauses.