Report: MySpace to push deeper into entertainment

The waning prospects of MySpace, once the dominate social network, are pushing parent company News Corp. to make some startling moves.

Rupert Murdoch, CEO of News Corp.

(Credit: Dan Farber/CNET)

The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Rupert Murdoch, CEO of News Corp., said he plans to reshape MySpace into an "entertainment portal."

The Journal reported that MySpace will enable the site's users, the number of which is quickly shrinking, to access entertainment and related information. Murdoch, however, didn't offer the paper any details about what this new entertainment focus would include.

The statements, made at the Allen & Company Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, come as Facebook continues to outpace MySpace in almost every relevant metric. The big question is how much would a facelift like the one proposed by Murdoch help the site?

First, MySpace is already heavily geared towards entertainment. News Corp. helped create MySpace Music in a joint venture with the four largest record labels. The service is not quite a year old and has struggled to find its footing, but MySpace is well stocked with music.

Los Angeles-based MySpace has long provided users with a means to upload their own video clips, so user-generated video is covered. When it comes to offering movies and TV shows, MySpace could conceivably do more with Hulu, the successful video portal that News Corp. started with NBC Universal.

It's hard to imagine something like that would move the needle much. Sources in the music, television, and movie sectors said they were unaware of any new deals regarding MySpace.

Could Murdoch be doing a little Sun Valley spin?

[cvaldes1831]

MySpace should be willing to adapt to the times. If they don't, they might end up like GeoCities.

I only use MySpace for tracking bands. It sounds like I'm not the only one.

[MichalWings]

tracking bands may i suggest a good search engine !

[ddhboy]

How about they stop trying to copy facebook and try and find something that separates them from the rest. Music is great and all, but if facebook has proven anything, its that people spend more time using simple, free, pointless apps than they do admiring some band they saw on MTV. Besides, we already have a music social site. Its called Last.FM and its far more personal an experience than myspace could ever hope to achieve.

[dg_husted]

The whole point of interactive is to increase the interactivity. My Space is far better positioned to make the move into and through the next phase of interactive programming, which will utilize and feed the Rupert Murdoch empire of world domination, I mean the properties of interactivity that are presently underdeveloped. They are only using about 1/3rd of what they have naturally in the infrastructure already. Maybe I am wrong, but either they know it and will start, or tehy really6 do need my phone number -- but I don't think I'm that revolutionary ...

[odubtaig]

Well, the first thing they need to do is replace all the chimpanzees with human programmers. Tiny, tiny little details like the calender only being useful if you actually live in the same time-zone as LA (enter time in your own time zone and watch as 8PM Saturday magically displays as it displays as 4AM Sunday). If there is an option that can fix this I can't find it so either it's programmed wrong or the interface design is useless. Same thing with these 'status' comments. Other people can see them but all I've got is an e-mail. I have to use another account or log out before I can see my own status comments.

The reason sites like Facebook are more successful is because they don't feel like they've been cobbled together by cavemen banging rocks together. They're actually designed.

[lordmorgul]

Going toward entertainment makes sense because it is no longer about COMMUNICATION between people anyway.

[MichalWings]

COMMUNICATION is about data the internet provides the exchange ideas

[hankthedwarf]

The name Myspace is synonymous with childish garbage, and most people have moved on. At one point Myspace was the only game in town that offered what they offer..but not anymore. Nothing they add will get it to grow again. They can keep their core like AOL has, but that number is a fraction of what they currently have.

[applextrent]

I find it entertaining that you reference the The Wall Street Journal as the source for this information seeing as News Corp and Murdoch own The Wall Street Journal, MySpace, and part of Hulu. This is article is basically just a circle of self promotion.

[djunison]

zooloo is way better than myspace, myspace died in 2006

[Harrison912]

In the past, I've used MySpace to socially market my safety and security web site. Since it's lost popularity, I'm not on there as much but I think going in the music and entertainment direction may be a good move if they can do something very unique and different with it.