• by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, February 22, 2007

Microsoft apparently is gearing up to enter the video-sharing space in a much bigger way. The company, which is testing the video site "Soapbox," also apparently recently mulled purchasing Revver, according to a report in CNET's News.com.

Microsoft's general manager of entertainment and video services, Rob Bennett, confirmed to News.com that a meeting occurred -- but didn't elaborate. While the article also says it doesn't look like a deal's going to happen any time soon, Microsoft still appears interested in at least exploring whether it can hire any Revver staff or harness the company's ad technology.

Though Revver doesn't have nearly the same popularity as YouTube, the company -- which pays content creators 50% of any ad revenue generated by their clips -- has cut several impressive deals. Revver snagged LonelyGirl15, the online serial drama about the life of supposed home-schooled teen "Bree" (now known to be fictional) that became a cult hit on YouTube. Additionally, the company just announced it will start providing clips to Verizon's new FiOS TV service and to its broadband entertainment portal later this year.

Should Microsoft end up purchasing Revver, or at least poaching its staff, it wouldn't be the first time the Redmond-based company has followed the lead of Google, which purchased YouTube last year for $1.65 billion.

Consider, Microsoft also did an ad deal with social networking site Facebook shortly on the heels of Google's $900 million deal with MySpace.

Of course, Google also is following Microsoft's lead in several areas. For instance, Google's reported recent purchase of in-game ad technology company Adscape comes several months after Microsoft bought Massive Inc.

These acquisitions, however, haven't gone entirely smoothly. Massive's former CEO Mitch Davis resigned last month. Google and MySpace reportedly have some tension over a potential e-commerce related deal between MySpace and eBay. And Google's ownership of YouTube seems to have triggered a backlash by TV companies like Viacom, who don't think Google's offering adequate compensation for copyrighted material that repeatedly surfaces on the site.