Soapbox, which Microsoft launched three years ago after making a strategic decision not to purchase a video uploading site, never really caught on. Jorgensen says the service generated less than 5 percent of overall streams on its MSN Video site, where the videos were hosted. Advertisers have also shown a strong preference for placing their ads around professionally created video content, rather than near user-created clips.

Jorgensen emphasized, however, that MSN remains committed to video, pointing out that MSN Video had its top ever month in the U.S. last year. The company is planning a major overhaul of its MSN portal for later this fall that will focus the site’s content offerings in fewer areas, including news, entertainment, sports, finance, and lifestyle.