Boomtown's Kara Swisher reports that Google and Microsoft are in "advanced talks" with Twitter over data mining deals that would allow the search companies to index the massive amounts of information now flowing through Twitter. One possible structure to the deal could result in one of the tech titans paying "several million dollars" to the social media startup, while another consists of a revenue share agreement.

For months now, industry watchers have wondered how Twitter would make money off its growing base of users. (Now standing at 54 million unique visitors per month). And maybe this is finally the idea, sell off the data flowing through the communications platform.

Citing unnamed sources, Swisher reports that the deals would be nonexclusive and there's still the possibility that no agreement could be reached.

A partnership with Google or Microsoft not only could provide additional revenue for Twitter, but it also could help boost traffic by putting Twitter conversations in the hands of the two of the biggest search engines on the planet.

Swisher writes:

But doing these kinds of data deals with big search players does make a lot of sense, since it would be hard for Twitter to turbocharge its own search engine without running into the big cash-laden guns at both Google and Microsoft, which recently launched its new Bing search service. Twitter is, instead, seeking to create a large open platform, which many could plug into, from search engines to marketers to publishers to developers. Twitter has also been considering offering premium services to these groups and is contemplating some form of advertising offering.

None of the parties commented on the report, though it has created a big buzz in the blogosphere. And Valleywag notes that Twitter already offers a service to some startups who pay a monthly fee to access its information.

But Google and Microsoft are a completely different type of partner. Twitter should be entering any negotiations right now form a position of strength, not only given its massive user base but also because of the $100 million in capital it recently raised.

Some have wondered why Twitter would need to raise so much cash. But, if Swisher's report is accurate, it would certainly make sense strategically to have that kind of money in the bank as it looks to wheel and deal with the likes and Google and Microsoft.

UPDATE: I asked Ken Moss-- former head of Microsoft's search engineering group and the co-founder of the Twitter search startup CrowdEye -- for his take on the talks. He stressed the importance of Twitter staying neutral:

"Twitter has built it's reputation and popularity by having a platform with a great philosophy of openness. The ecosystem of services built on and around Twitter are certainly partly responsible for it's remarkable success. Any deal that would restrict the innovation being led by the startup community by being exclusive would be counter to everything Twitter stands for. On the flip side, making their data more reliable, robust and accessible can only help them, and help companies like CrowdEye -- even if there's a graduated payment depending on company size."