Rupert Murdoch’s media conglomerate News Corporation has begun the process of selling or spinning off social network Myspace, according to media reports.
Citing an anonymous source familiar with the talks, Reuters reported yesterday that News Corp had…
Rupert Murdoch’s media conglomerate News Corporation has begun the process of selling or spinning off social network Myspace, according to media reports.
Citing an anonymous source familiar with the talks, Reuters reported yesterday that News Corp had received interest from 20 parties so far and expects more to come forward.
News Corp is reportedly being advised by Allen & Company.
A News Corp spokeswoman confirmed in January that the company was considering “all our strategic options” with respect to MySpace.
News Corp acquired Myspace for US$580m at the height of the social network’s prestige in 2005. But since then, it has struggled to compete against rival social networks, particularly Facebook.
According to News Corp’s results for the three months up to 31 December 2010, the unit of the business that includes Myspace made an operating loss of US$156m, up US$31m from the same period last year.
News Corp said in its results release that lower search and advertising revenues from Myspace were major reasons for these losses.
Across the whole business, News Corp announced operating income of US$1.3bn for the three months up to 31 December 2010, up from US$712m in the same period last year.
Myspace did not respond to requests for comment before the press deadline.