It’s as if every other month, some big tech company is releasing a new product, announcing a new product, or just talking about it. Then—another product is announced before we’ve gotten used to the previous one. That’s how it goes.

Well, rumors are swirling that Microsoft might spend up to $1 billion to launch the Windows Phone 7, according to a report from TechCrunch. This comes after the iPhone 4 was launched on Jun. 24.

See what I mean?

Microsoft would probably need that much to catch up with the iPhone and Android anyways. The company could spend up to $500 million (maybe more) just for marketing.

Of course, the rest of it would be dedicated to developing the phone and applications so Phone 7 makes the greatest impact it can at launch-time.

Jonathan Goldberg, a telecommunications analyst at Deutsche Bank, estimates that Microsoft will spend at least $400 million on marketing for the launch.

“This is a make-or-break for them. They need to do whatever it takes to stay in the game,” Goldberg said.

Take note: Apple’s 2009 advertising budget was $501 million, according to the company’s 2009 Form 10-K filing the SEC.

The Windows Phone 7 will most probably by launched by the end of this year. Microsoft will really have to charge the mountain if they want to make it to the top.