Search engine giant Google is in talks to buy popular video-sharing site YouTube for close to $1.6 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported today.

On the block?

Such a deal would likely be a boon for both companies, as Google is looking to increase its share of the online video market and YouTube is rapidly searching for revenue.

Citing a source close to the discussions, the Journal reports that negotiations between the two companies are at a sensitive stage and could break off. Neither company would comment on the report.

In less than two years, YouTube has become the predominant home for video on the Web, commanding a 47 percent share as of September 30, according to Internet measurement firm HitWise, and serving up 100 million videos per day. That dwarfs the market share of competitors like News Corp.'s MySpace video site (23 percent) and Google Video (11 percent).

But while Google would garner a hugely popular site, it would also take on its baggage. YouTube is rife with uploaded videos that have drawn the ire of their copyright holders, from record labels to movie studios.

Some of those companies, like Warner Music Group, have agreed to partner with YouTube, while others, like Universal Music, have made thinly veiled threats of litigation.