The social networking website MySpace provides users with the opportunity to create a unique online profile through which they can communicate with friends, watch videos, listen to music, blog and shop for free. Unlike many other social media sites, MySpace allows, and even encourages, budding musicians, filmmakers and artists to promote themselves and their products on its site.Forbes: Q&A: MySpace Founders... (January 1, 2004)

On August 21, 2010, PCWorld reported that MySpace would allow users the ability to sync their MySpace account with Facebook and Twitter.http://www.pcworld.com/article/204537/myspace_hands_over_updates_to_facebook.html?tk=hp_new Once the integration option is chosen one time, all updates to MySpace go to Facebook automatically.http://www.pcworld.com/article/204537/myspace_hands_over_updates_to_facebook.html?tk=hp_new According to PCWorld, MySpace created the process so that it would not lose its entertainment performers and celebrity clientele completely to its competitor Facebook, which has over 500 million users worldwide.http://www.pcworld.com/article/204537/myspace_hands_over_updates_to_facebook.html?tk=hp_new

MySpace began as a side project for eUniverse, an Internet marketing company that now goes by the name Intermix Media, in August 2003. Brad Greenspan, Chris DeWolfe, Josh Berman, and Tom Anderson worked together to create the site and officially launched it in January of 2004. By February of that year, the site had already gained one million registered users, and that number jumped to five million by November.

In July of 2005, the News Corporation bought and renamed eUniverse for $580 million. Roughly $327 million was the value of MySpace. At the time, the site had 20 million registered users. After the site was acquired, its revenues grew quickly from new, lucrative advertising deals.http://www.crunchbase.com/company/myspace MySpace operates solely on advertising revenues. Through the use of its own site and affiliated advertising networks, it uses the information on users' profiles to target them with advertising specific to their interests.

MySpace's popularity has taken a measurable hit since the creation of rival social networking site Facebook. Its views and user growth has been in decline since 2008, which was one of the contributing factors to the massive employee layoffs in 2009. Around 30% of the MySpace workforce was dismissed, amounting to around 400 people. Chris DeWolfe also lost his position as CEO and was replaced by Owen Van Natta.http://www.crunchbase.com/company/myspace

In July of 2010, a date set up through MySpace ended in the physical and sexual assault of a 17-year-old girl from Fairfax County.http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/teen-says-myspace-date-led-to-stabbing-rape-072810 The man arrested on two counts of sexual assault, malicious wounding, and abduction is Rony Herrera Deleon, a 27-year-old resident of the same county.http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/teen-says-myspace-date-led-to-stabbing-rape-072810 According to police reports, the two agreed to meet for dinner and a movie at Tysons Corner, but when Deleon picked the girl up, he said he had to make a stop at his aunt's house.http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/teen-says-myspace-date-led-to-stabbing-rape-072810 Although the girl went inside with him willingly, she was soon raped, stabbed multiple times with what she called a "folding knife",and then raped again before finally escaping.http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/teen-says-myspace-date-led-to-stabbing-rape-072810 Police met with her at the hospital as her wounds were being treated.http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/teen-says-myspace-date-led-to-stabbing-rape-072810

In late February of 2009, Marvin Chavelle Epps was arrested in Sacramento on charges of federal child pornography after using MySpace to meet at 16-year-old girl, whom he allegedly became sexually involved with both as her pimp and for his own pleasure. Epps admitted to using social networking sites to meet young girls, which is a growing problem according to law enforcement officials.CNET: Pimps Go Online to Lure Kids Into Prostitution (February 25, 2009)

In July of 2007, it was discovered that over 29,000 registered sex offenders had profiles on the website. It was argued that they could target potential victims through the site. MySpace subsequently removed the profiles and implemented procedures to protect underage users.ABC News: MySpace Finds 29,000 Sex Offenders (July 25, 2007)

Another an unfortunate incident occurred when depressed teen Megan Meier committed suicide after becoming the brunt of MySpace cyber bullying in November of 2007.MyFox St. Louis: Prosecutor To Review MySpace Suicide (November 14, 2007)

The Trojan horse virus Koobface reappeared on MySpace and Facebook in March 2009. Users are targeted in an invitation that looks like it is coming from a friend or contact. It invited the user to view a video by clicking on a link which takes the user to a counterfeit YouTube site and asked to update their Adobe Flash Player. After following the instructions, a Trojan horse virus program was downloaded to the computer.Washington Post: "Koobface" Worm Resurfaces on Facebook, MySpace (March 2, 2009)

"We don’t waste time on things. We didn’t sit down and write up this big plan and spreadsheets and try to force that imagined plan. We’ve been quick and nimble on our feet. I was working from common sense."—Tom Anderson, MySpace PresidentForbes: Q&A: MySpace Founders... (January 1, 2004)

"News Corp. isn't breaking out our revenue and profits. But I can tell you that we are number three in number of ads served on the Internet, which comes to 12% of all ads in the US on the Internet."—Chris DeWolfe, MySpace CEOForbes: Q&A: MySpace Founders... (January 1, 2004)