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Tag: new myspace

  • Myspace Touts Modest Gains, Up 12 Million Users from June Relaunch

    After a nearly six-month beta period, Myspace finally launched its new music-centric rebrand back in June. It launched as a decidedly new service – unlike any version of Myspace that’s ever been seen.

    And now, the company is announcing some stats about user growth post relaunch.

    According to Myspace, the site has grown from 24 million user pre-launch to 36 million users in roughly four months. And those users are trending toward the younger side – with 70% of the user base clocking in at under 35 years old.

    Myspace credits its rebound to its original programming and new partnerships with artists and content producers:

    Myspace attributes much of this early success to its decision to build out its content offering, partnering with premiere outlets, artists, and brands to develop and launch multiple franchises and a full slate of programming, including CRWN Presented by Myspace (Drake, Macklemore), Live At The Log Cabin Series (Run The Jewels, The 1975), and Music Video Collaborations With Artists We Like (TV On The Radio).

    In addition to original programming, Myspace has also invested in developing high-production-quality live streams, leveraging its platform to bring physical experiences to audiences everywhere. Spanning events, concerts, and traditional television programming, live streams, such as Bud Light 50/50/1, X-Games Music, and the Jimmy Kimmel Live Stream program, have been a key driver in engaging new audiences on Myspace.

    Despite this growth, it’s going to be a long road back for the once-dominant social network. The numbers speak for themselves. In the two weeks following New Myspace’s launch out of beta, the service grew by 7 million users. And in the past three months, that growth has slowed to just 5 million users.

    Sure, growth is growth – but those aren’t the most promising numbers. It’s true that Myspace has turned its focus to music, even more so that being a true social network – it’s kind of a hybrid. But with some many streaming music option and so many social networking options, is Myspace destined to once again get lost in the flood? Time will tell, but the company does seem happy to be at least moving in the right direction – even if that movement is a bit slow.

  • New Myspace Facing Music Rights Issue in First Week of Public Launch

    New Myspace Facing Music Rights Issue in First Week of Public Launch

    Last week, the all-new Myspace finally opened up to the public after a few-month-long beta period. Its launch, coincidentally, occurred at the same time that investor and head celebrity backer Justin Timberlake launched the new single from his upcoming album. The song, “Suit & Tie,” is displayed prominently on the homepage, leading some to joke that the new Myspace is merely an advertisement for its big star investor.

    We think that the Timberlake jokes are a little dismissive of the revamped social network, which successfully combines free music streaming and discovery with the social layer. It definitely has its kinks and problems, but the new Myspace is an undeniable improvement over the service that has been wasting away for the past couple of years.

    Impressive or not, the new Myspace is already running into some problems with its free streaming music. Apparently, one large agency is accusing the company of making tracks available that they no longer have the rights to.

    According to the NY Times, Merlin Network claims that Myspace is currently streaming songs from over 100 independent labels under its wing, although their permission to do so expired over a year ago.

    Merlin, a global right agency representing various independent labels like Sub Pop, Merge, and Domino, says that its deals negotiated with Myspace on the labels’ behalf ended in 2011. But much of that music is still streaming to users worldwide.

    “While it’s nice that Mr. Timberlake is launching his service on this platform, and acting as an advocate for the platform,” said Merlin’s Charles Caldas. “On the other hand his peers as artists are being exploited without permission and not getting remuneration for it.”

    Myspace has responded, saying that any remaining Merlin-represented artsits remain due to users uploading their music, and that they would cooperate in removing the “unlicensed” tracks per Merlin’s request.

    For a social network looking to rebrand itself and battle in a crowded market, the last thing they need is a rights battle.

    For a look at the redesigned Myspace, check out our hands-on.

  • New Myspace Opens Up To All (Especially Justin Timberlake Fans)

    After a few-month-long beta period, the big Myspace redesign is finally available to anyone and everyone who wishes to join. To sign up for a new Myspace account, you can either use your old Myspace credentials or log in via Facebook.

    When the redesign was first teased back in September 2011, it had Justin Timberlake all over it. And why shouldn’t it? Timberlake is without question the most famous celebrity investor in the company. The preview displayed the new profile look, entirely new side-scroll browsing, and music player all within the world of Timberlake.

    So we shouldn’t be surprised that the new Myspace opens up to the world right as Justin Timberlake drops a new single, right?

    The new Myspace signup page features a suit and tie-clad Timberlake (looking sharp, we should add) and two buttons: “Join” and “Sign In.” The landing page also says that “Justin Timberlake’s long-awaited return to music is here…simply sign in to hear the first track from his forthcoming album.”

    Indeed, when you sign in (or sign up), you’re once again met by Timberlake. There, you can play his new single “Suit & Tie” ft. Jay-Z.

    Back in December I gave a first look at the redesign, which focuses heavily on music and discovery. I noted that it sports some elements from popular streaming services like Spotify or Pandora, but with a fairly robust social networking layer on top of it. It doesn’t feel like any version of Myspace that you’re familiar with – it really is a huge redesign of the UI. I thought that it looks pretty good, and functions equally as well.

    The question wasn’t in the execution, but whether people would jump back on the Myspace wagon. The network has been through a lot. But with Timberlake clearly throwing all of his weight behind it and tying the release of his new single to the site’s grand re-opening, who knows?

  • New Myspace: A First Look at the Huge Redesign

    Myspace first teased their big redesign back in September, and the company is starting to let people in, sending out pre-launch invites to a select few. What follows is a quick first look at the new social network, which focuses heavily on music and discovery.

    When you first create you account, you’ll be met with the New Myspace landing page, which allows you to post a status (Myspace asks “What’s the latest?”) and navigate to your stream, your music library, and your connections. Connections come in the form of people and songs. Once you “connect” to a song, it is added to your library (and you’re allowed to comment on the particular track). Once you “connect” with a person, you’ll start to see their updates in your stream.

    When adding a new post, you have 150 characters to work with. You can also add photos and songs to your updates. To add a song, just click on the music notes icon and start typing – the instant search will find what you’re looking for, considering it’s a part of the library.

    On the bottom of your screen is the player, where you can interact with all the music you discover on the site. You can create mixes, add to your connections, and launch radio based on certain tracks (similar to Pandora or Spotify).

    That’s where you can access the “Discover” section as well, which lets users browse trending music, mixes, videos, radio, people, and articles. Like the preview suggested, the new layout is media rich with a heavy lean toward tiles and a new side-scroll that rewards widescreen displays.

    Searching inside the new Myspace is pretty cool, in that all you have to do it start typing – from anywhere. Whether you’re on the homepage or another user’s profile, just start typing and the search screen will pop up:

    Here’s an album page:

    User profiles also sport the same side-scroll format, and feature a profile pic and a large background image. From a user’s profile, you can check out their top-artist, mixes, connections, photos, videos, etc.

    Upon first look, it appears that the New Myspace sports some of the best elements of a streaming music service like Spotify or Pandora, and also adds a vast social networking layer on top of that. We knew that the redesign would focus heavily on music, and it does just that. They just started the limited distribution of invites for those that signed up early, so the network is far from densely populated as of right now. It’s a huge redesign, that’s for sure. It truly feels nothing like any version of Myspace that you’re familiar with. It looks great and UI shouldn’t be a problem for the site moving forward. Whether people will want to jump back on the Myspace train, no matter how impressive the redesign, is the big question.