Myspace is back.

The once-popular social media site is completely redesigning its website as a way to attract musicians and other new users. The new Myspace features personal images and events laid out in a grid-like style similar to Pinterest.

The new site seems to favor musicians, with options to create personal playlists and to see the geographic and demographic breakdown of users listening to specific artists. The pages scroll horizontally instead of vertically, which makes the layout unique from other social media sites, according to a video uploaded on the website.

The new site hasn’t gone live and its public debut remains unknown.

The changes came about after advertising network operator Specific Media bought Myspace in June 2011 for $35 million. Myspace had been losing 3 million users a month for the past two years under the ownership of News Corp., according to a July 20 Forbes article.

Specific Media teamed up with singer and actor Justin Timberlake to redesign the site while keeping Myspace’s main goal in mind: connecting musicians with their fans. Myspace’s music library currently has 42 million songs, which is more than twice as large as Spotify’s music selection, according to the article.

William Ward, a social media professor, said he thinks Myspace is trying to become an entertainment hub for music and video. He said one of Myspace’s most interesting features will be the ability for users to watch television shows live with their friends online, which is something other social media sites haven’t captured yet.

The new Myspace won’t be competition for major social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, but competing with these sites isn’t the point, Ward explained.

“They’re not going to be the Facebook killer,” Ward said. “They’re going to have to carve out their own niche and try to capture a smaller market based around what they’re doing.”

Freshman Shayne Sebro, a marketing major, isn’t interested in the new Myspace, but thinks its new design and music focus will attract users.

“I think Myspace is going to become a kind of hipster Facebook, but just for music,” he said. “I don’t think it’s going to make a Facebook-sized comeback, but I think it will be popular in its own sense.”

Sophomore education major Melody Allan said that because Facebook and Twitter are so prominent, it will be difficult for MySpace to make a big comeback.

“I mean, Myspace was really big and Facebook kind of wedged its way in there, so it could happen, but I don’t think it’s very likely,” she said.

Ward said Myspace’s design is much more visual and active than it was previously, but the site has to have more than a good design to be successful.

“Just because they release something now, they can’t just be like ‘Here it is,’” he said. “They have to keep improving and changing it all the time because all their competitors are.”

Ward said many people will judge Myspace based on its previous image, but he encourages everyone to see what the new site has to offer. Users need to give Myspace a chance and not just rely on others’ opinions. It’s important that individuals use the site themselves before judging it, he said.

Having Timberlake as a spokesman might pique some people’s interest in the site, Ward said.

Said Ward: “I jokingly say he brought sexy back, so maybe he can bring Myspace back.”

 

Published on October 2, 2012 at 1:06 am

Contact Jill: [email protected]