Bill,

>>..Plus you have to have a commercial application available after 6 months of joining ,to be highlighted on the ISV Partner Program [not a bad deal actually]

To be more specific, within 6 months you have to publicly announce on your company website the commercial product you are developing that supports one of the platforms listed in the requirements. You then have to release the product for sale within 12 months. The subscription is just for one year at that price, with renewals at the usual renewal price.

I don't know how strict the application process is, but it seems that many people might qualify for this.