Microsoft: Soapbox no longer competing with YouTube

In the midst of the current economic climate reports have surfaced which state that Microsoft will be scaling back it's YouTube competitor, Soapbox. Soapbox has been around since 2006, but never seemed to dent the market share of YouTube.

Microsoft Vice President Erik Jorgensen said that Microsoft will 'scale back' Soapbox due to the economic situation. Recently, Jorgensen also announced the discontinuation of Microsoft Money.

However, Soapbox will not be disappearing, it will be transformed. According to CNET:

"Microsoft hopes to transform Soapbox... from an also-ran in the user-generated content space into a forum where bloggers and citizen journalists can post videos relevant to areas in which MSN focuses, categories like entertainment, lifestyle, and finance."

With that said, it is still unclear whether or not user uploads will be freely allowed.

According to a 2007 report, YouTube dominated the video sharing market with 45% share, with Soapbox trailing behind at only 3%. It is also reasonable to assume that YouTube's market share has increased within the past two years.

Enjoy!