LOS ANGELES (AP) — Pop star Justin Timberlake is part of a group that said Wednesday it will buy MySpace from News Corp., a bid to add some cool to a social network that has been losing it for some time. Timberlake will become a part owner and play "a major role in developing the creative direction and strategy for the company moving forward," according to Specific Media, the company that he will partner with. The deal is for $35 million, mostly in Specific Media stock, according to a person familiar with the matter. The deal values MySpace at a fraction of what News Corp. paid for the site six years ago and paves the way for the layoff of about half of the 500 workers, the person said. As part of the exchange, News Corp. will receive a private equity stake in Specific Media. With Timberlake's help, the buyers hope to revitalize MySpace and transform it into a destination for original shows, as well as bolster its already available video content and music.
Do you get the feeling that JT is one of those "I'm not really a Doctor, but I played one on TV once," kinda guys? I mean he gets that just because he played an internet startup geek, doesn't actually qualify him as one in real life, right? Or maybe more importantly, his co-investors understand this I hope? Because throwing the faith of a failing social networking site into the hands of a guy who's only internet development experience was playing an egotistical maniac in a fictional Facebook Biopic seems like a bit of a stretch to me.
Myspace doesn't need a cool name and face as the front man for the company, they need less convicted sex offenders, and a few tech geeks to clean up the structure of the site so that I'm not stuck sitting here waiting 5 minutes for your page to load because you've filled it with animated .gif's and some ungodly music that you think will make people believe you're an introspective, tortured soul.
