The former king of social networking, MySpace, has risen from the grave with a new interface, and bold ambition. In taking cues from other social network designs like Pinterest and Facebook’s Timeline, it seems MySpace has potential to make a scene again in the digital world. Will it mean anything, though?
The world of social media is anything but friendly or compassionate. It’s a shark tank of website coders and entrepeneurs striving to create “the next big thing.” First it was MySpace, which dissipated thanks to bloat and a frustrated user base. Then it was Facebook, which is currently still on top, though it has had competition and had the unintended side effect of segregating white users from people of color.
Google + was arguably a failure, though, leaving the Facebook user base relatively in tact. It is without competition in the world, aside from the oddball market of China, where Renren and QQ are the dominant social networks. Something new is stirring in the social media world, though. The seemingly dead corpse of MySpace is rising, with a new skin and familiar goals.
MySpace has gone away from the infamous user interface of the past decade. We’re all familiar with the GIF-laden pages what would show up in its heyday: covered in internet bling and colorful animations that clogged up 56K modems and broadband — and this is without the streaming music that everybody seemed to have. It’s own customization seemed to be its downfall; instead of providing people with a unique corner of the net, it frustrated users. MySpace clogged computer lab, university, and home connections without remorse, and drove it’s own userbase away to Facebook, which was praised for it’s clean interface.
That’s gone. The new MySpace has learned from social websites, and seems to be a child of Timeline and Pinterest in terms of look. There is a degree of customization in terms of looks, and music playing on people’s pages seems to be returning as well. However, this is not the real point of interest of this new MySpace. It seems that the designers have gone back to the original intention of the website: an orientation toward artists.
The invite request page lays it out best:
“We’re staying true to our roots in one important way—empowering people to express themselves however they want. So whether you’re a musician, photographer, filmmaker, designer or just a dedicated fan, we’d love for you to be a part of our brand new community.”
This MySpace seems to be aware of it’s errors in the past. Instead of becoming a direct competitor to Facebook as Google +, it is returning to its roots, seeking to provide a unique new way to connect artists of all types to their fanbase. This is a niche which is arguably filled by Twitter or Facebook fan pages. Even then, though, communication can be one-sided, especially with groups or things with larger followings. Whether or not MySpace can make creator and consumer creation easier remains to be seen, but that seems to be its goal.
The re-branding of MySpace does not mean that it will not compete with Facebook, though. The original Facebook was intended for college aged people to communicate, now it has become a web for people around the world. Discontent among Facebook users is arguably measurable, as well as with investors. A rather poor IPO showing, indifference to the Timeline interface, and a seeming user market saturation point (unless the Chinese market opens up — in which case, Facebook will be directly competing against Renren) are all signs that some people want to jump the book.
That said, Google + did not bring down the Facebook juggernaut. Whether or not the new, and different MySpace will make a splash or fail (again) will be interesting to watch, but expecting a clash of the titans seems out of the question for now.
Elaine Rita Mendus is a undergraduate student working on graduating college (someday soon). Her career interests include geopolitics, the Hispanic community, and urban planning. She really wouldn't mind ending up a scriptwriter though...
