News Corp. Is Considering Selling Myspace

by Jennifer Johnson — Thursday, January 13, 2011, 03:24 PM EDT

After reports surfaced that News Corp. is considering selling Myspace, a News Corp. spokeswoman has confirmed that the company is exploring “strategic options” for Myspace. News Corp. purchased Myspace in 2005 for $580 million. Since then, the social networking site has struggled in comparison to its competitor, Facebook.

Reports that News Corp. was looking into options for Myspace surfaced after the social network cut 500 employees, which is nearly 50 percent of its staff. The Wall Street Journal, also owned by News Corp., reported the Mike Jones, chief executive of Myspace, had told employees in a companywide meeting on Wednesday that News Corp. was exploring a sale, merger, or spinoff of Myspace.

According to a person familiar with the matter, News Corp. has only just begun the process. The company plans to meet with potential partners in the near future.

Lou Kerner, a Wedbush Securities social media analyst, felt the layoffs were a likely indication that a sale of Myspace is possible. "I think this is likely a first step to selling the asset," Kerner said. "It certainly makes sense for News Corp. to take a hatchet to the company as preparation for a sale so when somebody acquires it that's not the first thing that they have to do." he said.

Tags: MySpace, Social Networking, Sale

Jennifer Johnson

Jennifer grew up around technology. From an early age, she was curious about all things related to computers. As a child, Jennifer remembers spending nights with her dad programming in BASIC and taking apart hard drives to see what was inside. In high school, she wrote her senior term paper on her experiences with building custom computers.

Jennifer graduated from the Jeffrey S. Raikes School of Computer Science and Management at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. After college, she began writing full-time for various PC and technology magazines. Later, she transitioned to the Web. In these roles, Jennifer has covered a variety of topics including laptops, desktops, smartphones, cameras, tablets, and various consumer electronics devices. When she's not playing with or writing about the latest gadget, Jennifer loves to spend time with her family, capture memories with her camera, and scrapbook.

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