MySpace Relaunch TODAY, Justin Timberlake Helps Struggling Social Networking Site

MySpace is relaunching officially today after a series of investments from Justin Timberlake and his business friends. 

Timberlake, along with business partners Chris and Tim Vanderhook, bought the social media site for $35 million dollars in 2011. It might sound like a lot, but compare it to the $580 million that Rupert Murdoch spent on the site in 2005, and Facebook's recent estimated worth of $63.47 billion. Timberlake and company tinkered with the site's design and business model and are looking to compete with Facebook for social media supremacy. 

The group opted to cut MySpace's staff back to ease costs, and hired an Australian firm to update the site's appearance. The network's popularity among musicians has always been one of MySpace's strong points, and the site hopes to utilize the musical appeal to attract new users. MySpace possesses longstanding contracts with most major music companies, which allows it to run a music streaming service similar to that of Spotify or the new iRadio. Ultimately,  the goal is for the site to resemble a hybrid of Facebook and Spotify. Syd Schwartz, the executive marketing director of Linchpin Digital, thinks the company might be watering down its capabilities. 

"I'm not sure what they're going to offer that's going to compete with the likes of Spotify and Rdio and Deezer and the relaunched MOG and Daisy. Are they trying to rebrand themselves as a social network or as a music service?" he told Rolling Stone. "They're in a tight squeeze because they're in a battle on two fronts - Facebook on one and Spotify on the other."

One advantage the company has is Timberlake as a figurehead. The performer/now entrepreneur is already shopping the new site and hoping to bring fellow musicians into the fold. 

"I always had a MySpace - always updated it, always connected with my fans," says Swedish House Mafia's Steve Angello. "I don't think they'll have any problem coming back. It's built very visually compared to other social media."

Although the official launch of the new site is today, a beta version has been available since 2012.