News Corp. to MySpace: Time is running out
In call with analysts, News Corp. says it has made it clear that the social network "is a problem" that needs to be fixed sooner rather than later.
MySpace has a very limited amount of time to revive its operation, News Corp. said during a recent call with analysts.
"We've been clear that MySpace is a problem," News Corp. President and COO Chase Carey said yesterday during the call, according to AFP. "The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. Our current management did not create these losses but they know we have to address them."
When News Corp. acquired MySpace in 2005 for $580 million, it thought it had a winner on its hands. After all, MySpace was the place to go for social networking. But since then, the service has been hit hard by the growth of both Facebook and Twitter. MySpace currently has over 100 million users worldwide. Facebook has over 500 million active users around the world, while Twitter currently has 175 million registered users.
Going forward, Carey said that MySpace's time is running out. He acknowledged that the social network's "traffic numbers are still not going in the right direction," and his company would need to "stabilize that and have a predictable path forward." He said that News Corp. will judge success for MySpace "in quarters, not in years."
MySpace is hoping to meet that possible deadline with a site redesign and new focus.
Last week, the social network unveiled its new site, which attempts to bridge the gap between social entertainment and Generation Y. The site includes several features, including a Topics product that delivers over 20,000 "entertainment-focused, dynamic pages" to users. MySpace hopes to have the site available to all of its users by the end of November.
But as Facebook's star continues to rise, it could become increasingly more difficult for MySpace to regain its past glory.