What Happened To MySpace And Who Owns It Now?
These days, numerous social media websites battle for supremacy, but throughout much of the aughts, social media began and ended with Myspace. The site went live in 2003, and it quickly dominated the social media landscape. At its peak in 2008, Myspace attracted 115 million unique global monthly users, but it's no longer what it was. Facebook came along and blew away the competition, relegating Myspace to the internet graveyard.
At least, that's what many likely believe, thanks to the dominance of Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms made up of user content. Myspace was different, and while it was developing, so too was the social media marketplace. The various innovations Myspace implemented have since been forgotten by its competition or adapted into new platforms, and while it was once king, Myspace is nowhere near where it was at its height.
By 2009, Facebook had surpassed Myspace's monthly users, and as former Myspace users registered for Facebook accounts, Myspace faded into obscurity. The site isn't what it was, but it's still around. Myspace carved out a tiny niche within the marketplace, and since its fall, it's been bought and sold numerous times as it's changed in numerous attempts to remain relevant. This is what happened to Myspace and what it is now, more than two decades after its launch.
The first global social network
Myspace wasn't the first social network, but it was the first to attract a global audience of users. Other sites like Friendster came before it, but Myspace took what worked from the competition, altered it, and made it its own. This set Myspace apart, and it established a new medium for people to connect around the world. People could identify their friends, rank them, share their thoughts and even code their page via basic HTML to alter its appearance and include their favorite song.
Myspace succeeded where its rivals failed, and it grew exponentially. When Facebook came around, Myspace took note, and in early 2004, Myspace's starting CEO, Chris DeWolfe, considered purchasing the newly-developed Facebook from Mark Zuckerberg for $75 million, but passed due to the price tag. Facebook went on to completely dominate the social media market, but that would take a few years. In the meantime, Myspace continued to innovate and improve its services.
By 2005, Myspace's founders sold Myspace to media mogul Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. for $580 million. At the time, the site was the fifth most-viewed website online, and it continued to grow. This wasn't the last time Myspace would change hands, as it would be sold numerous times over the years. In 2011 Myspace was sold to Justin Timberlake and Specific Media Group for $35 million, showing just how much the site devalued since News Corp. purchased it six years earlier.
What Myspace looks like today and who owns it
Myspace changed considerably under Timberlake's involvement, morphing away from its social media roots to become a music-discovery site. Recording artists and bands could post their songs and music videos, making millions of tracks and clips available on the site. Myspace sold once more to Time Inc. The company bought Viant, which was previously Interactive Media Holdings and before that, Specific Media, for an undisclosed amount in 2018.
After that, Meredith Corporation purchased Time Inc., and the following year, it spun off Myspace, selling it to Viant Technology LLC, which currently operates the social media-turned-music platform. These days, Myspace continues to operate, but it's nothing like it once was. Former users who left the platform for greener pastures likely wouldn't recognize Myspace as it currently exists, as it's entirely focused on music with social media features.
In an ironic twist, if you select the "People" link on the main page, you'll be given an opportunity to sign in with your Facebook account to "find friends who are already on Myspace." While this will get you on the site, its musical focus leans heavily away from standard social media uses. While Myspace isn't what it used to be, it's still accessed by around 15 million people as of 2021. This is considerably fewer active users than the site enjoyed in its heyday, but, Myspace still hasn't gone away completely.