Former Social Networking Giant Crumbling

Today in class the discussion of our reading and the presentation on the future of Facebook, and inevitably someone brought up MySpace and how it has fizzled out in its use with people. After class got out I saw an article online about MySpace and the headline read that they lose over 10 millions users every month now, and that number is certainly growing as time goes on and on. The article says that as recently as last year lost $100 million dollars in the first quarter and the News Corp, the company that owns MySpace, says that a major investment would have to be put down in order for them to get back into the social network race with rival, Facebook. However, chief executive Mike Jones admitted last November that “MySpace is a not a social network anymore. It is now a social entertainment destination.” They know they cannot win in the battle of people's number social networking site, and thus will look to grow on the one thing that has been most successful which is MySpace Music, where aspiring artists post free streaming of their songs and live videos of them on the road as a way to reach out to potential new fans. I recently heard a radio interview with a local Iowa City band, and at the end of the interview they were asked to plug their social media addresses, and they brought up Facebook and YouTube first, and then one of the interviewers asked if they still had a MySpace. The band laughed before they responded with a "Yes, but we don't really check that anymore," and said that Facebook was the best way to find information and content on their band.

So using this example, I would gather to say that at this point, MySpace knows that they are a sinking ship, and has lost to Facebook in the social networking arena, and that their main plan is to build off of MySpace Music, but it does not look terribly likely that this will save them. I'm sure the executives are aware of their lack of social capital, and have heard many examples like the one I talked about before. In my estimation the music route is just a way to put on a brave face, and at least say that they have a plan going forward, even though they know in another 3-5 years MySpace will be a 2 minute segment on a nostalgic pop culture show on VH1. I understand the idea that they should stand tall in this situation, but sometimes it is better to just face the music, admit defeat, and cut your losses.