Microsoft tests its YouTube rival

Soapbox, which can be found here is part of a cunning plan by Vole to cream in a bit of cash on the back of the YouTube phenomena.

The site will offer all those really funny home videos where the participants fall over, babies eat chocolate biscuits, pets playing in boxes or paint drying.

Vole's version will be offered to a limited number of users during an invitation-only test phase. A spokesVole said it will go live as a part of MSN Video within six months.

Vole hopes that its Soapbox player that allows people to categorise, share and comment on videos, while the thing is running will capture the imagination of the punters.

Soapbox runs on Firefox and Safari, not just Voleware, and will support a number of video file formats and delivery methods, according to Microsoft.

More at the Washington Post . µ