Like YouTube and other similar products from Yahoo and Google, Soapbox allows users to watch and post videos, rate or comment on them, and share favorites by emailing them or linking them to personal web pages or blogs.
But Microsoft has several key advantages over the other services — videos on the Soapbox system will be displayed in larger windows. And Soapbox users can expand videos to the full screen while they are playing, rather than having to jump back to the beginning and start over as other services do.
Soapbox also supports a maximum file size of 100 megabytes and no restriction on the length of the video. YouTube only allows videos under 10 minutes.
Microsoft’s new service will work on computers running both Microsoft Windows and Apple Computer Inc.'s operating systems and will accept the major media formats, including Windows Media Player and Apple's QuickTime, and work using Microsoft's Internet Explorer or Mozilla's Firefox browsers.
Soapbox groups videos in various categories, including most recent, most viewed, most commented on and top favorites, and will let users "tag" clips with keywords designed to make them easier for people to find.
While it hasn’t yet figured its strategy for making money off of it, Microsoft is weighing several options for incorporating advertising, including posting ads directly on pages with videos or hosting ad-sponsored contests that seek contributions from users.
So far, the video services have found little in revenue but huge outlays in bandwidth costs. YouTube launched more than a year and a half ago.
Soapbox, which has been in the development stage for several months under the code name “Warhol,” will roll out in the coming weeks after an initial launch that includes select testers and Microsoft employees.
