Microsoft urges users not to run leaked beta versions of its forthcoming MSN Messenger Version 6 instant messaging application because the software is not ready for consumer use.
Early versions of MSN Messenger 6 have popped up on dozens of Web sites and new sites spring up every day. Microsoft said the versions that are offered on the Web are meant for internal testing only and that it does not know who leaked the software.
"We had intended for the beta to be an internal beta only. MSN strongly discourages users from downloading a beta from unauthorized sites due to concerns about the stability of the code and lack of complete information," Microsoft"s MSN unit said in a statement sent via e-mail Friday.
Microsoft has asked individual Web sites offering the beta for download to pull the software, Larry Grothaus, lead product manager for MSN said. Users should be patient and wait for the "public preview" of the application that is due out in the next couple of weeks, he said.