If you happen to know anyone who’s employed by MySpace, today’s a good day to keep them in your thoughts. MySpace CEO Mike Jones confirmed that heavy layoffs will occur, with 47 percent of the company’s employees (or roughly 500 people) due to be affected.
While it’s hard to imagine that half of MySpace’s workforce contributed absolutely nothing, and it’s extra suspicious that Jones made his announcement at a time when the Verizon/iPhone hoopla was distracting everyone, the CEO did try to indicate that MySpace is in good shape now.
Jones explained in a statement, "Today’s tough but necessary changes were taken in order to provide the company with a clear path for sustained growth and profitability. These changes were purely driven by issues related to our legacy business and in no way reflect the performance of the new MySpace."
He later added, "[T]he new MySpace is trending positively and the good news is we have already seen an uptick in returning and new users. Since the worldwide rollout of the new MySpace, there have been more than 3.3m new profiles created."
The layoffs will make running MySpace a less expensive proposition for News Corp., in any event, and if News Corp. attempts to sell the property (as some rumors have indicated), they also could help convince potential buyers to step forward.
Good luck to the affected individuals.