MySpace: The Mag

  A few weeks ago, rumors began being bandied about the blogosphere that MySpace was in talks to create a magazine.  That’s right, a good old-fashioned ink-on-paper magazine, geared toward its members.  And while, at the moment, it’s nothing more than an idea (exacerbated by rumor), the idea of “MySpace: The Magazine” is interesting on several levels.

  According to a brief article that appeared late last month on AdAge.com, MySpace was in talks with Nylon magazine to create a publication that would “likely cover standout MySpace members and their interests, from music to their social scenes.”  In case you’re unfamiliar, Nylon is a fashion/music/lifestyle magazine that targets 18-24 year olds—the same demographic with which MySpace struck gold.  In fact, the two entities have already worked together once.  Nylon partnered with MySpace in May to put together the Nylon Music Issue.  The issue bore a cover that touted “Listen to this magazine on MySpace,” where interactive features allowed readers to stream music reviewed in the mag.

  Whether a magazine that is centered around the “MySpace lifestyle”—a term that is, very nearly, an oxymoron—would succeed is something that remains to be seen.  If history is any indicator, the future ain’t exactly dazzling.  eBay Magazine hit shelves in 1999, and was designed to serve as a serial handbook on the online auction craze, a tangible, interactive tool that would strengthen the eBay brand by establishing a rapport with online amateur auctioneers.   In essence, it was a marketing tool intended to drive traffic to the site.  The magazine folded in December 2002, after a little more than a year in production.

  Similar site-oriented print magazines have also fizzled after short shelf lives.  Pets.com tried it briefly.  Garden.com published Garden Escape Magazine for a short time, and Yahoo! Internet Life folded after a six year run.  Of the many dot-com outlets that have attempted to expand into print, there are virtually none left.

  So why would MySpace be any different?  The social networking site’s slogan is “A place for friends.”  That is, and always has been, MySpace’s appeal.  It’s a place where you can find old friends and make new ones.  There are a lot of sites out there doing the same thing, but obviously many feel that MySpace does it best.  This isn’t about brand allegiance.  There is no loyalty to MySpace: The Brand.  The site’s users want to connect with their friends, and MySpace is the instrument that allows them to do it.  Which is exactly why MySpace: The Self-Serving Magazine wouldn’t work.

  If the premise is to showcase the “standout members,” why should the reader rely on the magazine’s editorial board to select those members, when all 113 million of them can be checked out for free online?  I honestly don’t get it.

  Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation bought the MySpace brand in July of 2005.  If this magazine ever sees the light of day, it will be a good indication that Murdoch doesn’t understand the product that he bought, like a man trying to figure out how to use his new voice-activated remote control.  Up next—MySpace: The Breakfast Cereal.

-From Pulse
   September 28, 2006