Microsoft made public this morning a Beta Version of its Personal Health Record (PHR) platform, HealthVault. This has enormous implications for the nascent PHR market.

For example:

• What will be Google’s response be (they seem to have really lost their way)? Will they acquire partner WebMD to try and accelerate their own PHR efforts and not let Microsoft get too much of a lead?
• What about the multitude of small PHR players? Are smaller players soon to be crushed by Microsoft’s overwhelming marketing resources and seemingly unlimited budget?
• Will Yahoo quietly bow out of the market? Not to say that they are virtually out of it already.
• Will a consumer turn to HealthVault, or one sponsored by their employer, provider or insurance company, e.g., the employer initiative Dossia, or Aetna’s Active Health?

This is a first cut at some of the implications of Microsoft’s HealthVault PHR and I’m sure I’ll think of many more. In the meantime, however, I’ll be doing a review of HealthVault, looks at it features, functions, privacy, partners, etc. and get back with more of a product review in next 24 hours.