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If you thought adverts on the web have become more offensive and more intrusive than ever before, then it might be time to find alternatives to using software from Microsoft.

Microsoft has filed a patent (here) that threatens to breathe life into Bill Gates’ and Ray Ozzie’s Frankenstein-like Windows Live “vision”, unveiled in November 2005, for putting annoying, in-your-face internet adverts inside your most important Windows applications.

The giant has claimed what it calls an “advertising framework” that would suck “context data” from your PC so advertisers can display ads on the client, and to split revenue with the advertiser and the owner of the application supplying the data.

According to the patent, any application such as – oh, say – a word processor or email client – may “serve as both a source of context data and as a display client.” Microsoft’s advertising framework would also stipulate “acceptable” advertising – so no porn popping up in your Dynamics CRM or ads for SAP – “restrictions on use of alternate display clients” (so no money for you, Linux), and “specifying supporting media” – forget Real Player and QuickTime, the future is Silverlight.

The patent, filed with the US patent and trademark office, would allow for more targeted, relevant and context-sensitive ads, according to Microsoft.

“Targeted advertisements is highly valued by advertisers because it allows placement of advertisements that are theoretically of greater interest to a particular audience member than blanket advertising,” Microsoft’s filing said.

Why would you pay money to a company when you are the product the company tries to sell?