Wait … Microsoft Had Its Own Version of YouTube?

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Microsoft LogoIs there any industry where Microsoft isn’t competing with bitter rival GoogleGoogleGoogle? Think about it: Bingbingbing vs. Google Search, Google DocsGoogle DocsGoogle Docs vs. Microsoft Office (soon to be online), GmailGmailGmail vs. Hotmail, Windows Mobile vs. AndroidAndroidAndroid, and let’s not forget Windows vs. Google Chrome OS.

With all of these high profile battles, you really can’t blame us if we’re saying “meh” to the news that Microsoft is closing Soapbox. Wait, what’s Soapbox you ask? Why, that’s their version of YouTubeYouTubeYouTube, and part of the far more popular MSN Video website.

The YouTube clone opened up in early 2007, not long after Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion. It just hasn’t gained much traction though – thus why you’ve probably never heard of it. And when you’ve had a product out for over two years and you fail to make any inroads on your much larger competitor, it’s a good time to quit.

But hey, I hear Microsoft’s embarking on a new venture: retail stores. Maybe they’ll have better luck there.


Tags: bing, microsoft, Soapbox, youtube
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WARNING: TwitViewer May Be a Phishing Scam

Want to know who visits your Twitter () profile? Sounds potentially interesting, and it’s the premise of TwitViewer.net, a site that is being shared by thousands of Twitter users this afternoon with the message “Want to know whos stalking you on Twitter?”

Unfortunately, it appears that TwitViewer may be a phishing scam, or at the least, is probably not doing what it promises. Upon entering your credentials, it does show you a list of users that supposedly visited your profile – but it seems likely this is simply fake, as a dummy account we created just to test the app showed 200 recent visitors seconds after registering. The app also automatically tweets out the “want to know whos stalking you?” message (and yes, the message itself is spelled wrong).

It’s unclear that this is phishing, as the site does let you know that it will send out the auto-tweet. It’s almost certainly not doing what it promises though, as there would be no conceivable way for it to know who has been visiting your Twitter profile. In short: be wary of this app, and if you logged in, you may want to consider changing your password (Twitter suggests you do the same).