Software Notebook: Fiat rolls out Microsoft-driven, in-car 'infotainment'

For the past few months, little noticed by the outside world, a team on Microsoft Corp.'s Redmond campus has been running tests with one of the swankiest machines ever to use the company's software.
Rather than sitting on a desk, this piece of hardware gets parked in a garage.
The 2006 Alfa Romeo 159 is one of four cars to offer "infotainment" systems run on Windows Mobile for Automotive.
It's a 2006 Alfa Romeo 159, and it represents a new step in Microsoft's effort to spread its technology beyond personal computers. At the Geneva Auto Show this week, Fiat Auto plans to announce the availability of an in-car entertainment and information system that uses Microsoft software in four upcoming Alfa Romeo and Fiat models.
Based on Microsoft's Windows Mobile for Automotive software, the system is ultimately expected to be available for all Fiat, Lancia and Alfa Romeo vehicles from the Italian automaker. Features include the ability to use voice commands and buttons on the steering wheel to control mobile phones and portable music devices in the car.
Microsoft's automotive technology is available in different forms through electronics suppliers, but the Fiat agreement is the first of its kind directly between Microsoft and an auto manufacturer. The software company hopes it will lead to deals with others.