If a tree falls in the woods with nobody around, does it make a sound? If MySpace disappears, will anyone notice?
MySpace's five users should be very worried with News Corp's plan to sell the web site. That is, if News Corp. can even sell it.
I'll be shocked if News Corp. finds a buyer for MySpace. The web site is completely irrelevant in today's social media world. Consider this the death knell for MySpace.
I won't completely dismiss MySpace, though. It definitely had its place in the history of social media. It was a great way for singers and bands to get noticed. Everyone had a MySpace when I was a junior in high school (2004). It was the cool thing to have. I still even have a MySpace account, despite not accessing it for years (good luck finding it).
People filled their MySpace with lots of crazy .GIFs and loud, unmutable music greeted you on their page. Embedded flash and YouTube videos would usually freeze and crash browsers. You could be yourself or adopt a fake persona.
Facebook was always the holy grail, though. My friends and I couldn't wait until we could get a Facebook account, back when it was college only. People had to verify who they were on Facebook (via a .edu e-mail address). I'll admit I contacted my college to get my school e-mail address before freshman orientation, just so I could join my college's Facebook network. Everyone's Facebook page looked the same, creating a sense of calm against MySpace's insanity.
MySpace represented teennage angst while Facebook was maturity.
In 2005, News Corp. bought MySpace for $580 million. Seemed like a good investment based on the lack of other significant social media competition (Friendster was dying). Eventually, Facebook opens itself up for high school students, businesses and finally the world. This practically eviscerated MySpace and began its decline.
Despite rebranding, a focus on music and layout changes, MySpace is now essentially dead.
News Corp. made a good amount of money based on a Google advertising deal, so they recouped their investment. But now MySpace makes absolutely no sense for News Corp.
But who will even buy MySpace? Yahoo might since it has an identity crisis and can't figure out what direction to take. Besides Yahoo, I just can't picture any company buying MySpace. It's not exactly a good investment.
The new owner could try and reinvent MySpace, but it won't work. The MySpace brand brings back memories of bathroom mirror pictures, listening to Hawthorne Heights ("Ohio is for Lovers," to be specific), drama over who made your top 8 and some guy named Tom who always wanted to be a friend.
I'm not sure anyone wants to revisit that chapter of their life. I know I don't.
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