Justin Timberlake to promote MySpace

LOS ANGELES, USA: Pop star Justin Timberlake will be the new face of MySpace which has been bought by online advertising network Specific Media from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp for $35 million.

Based at Irvine near here, Specific Media has bought MySpace in cash and equity. News Corp had bought MySpace for $580 million in 2005 when Facebook was just one year old.

As MySpace has now just 35 million users against 157 million Facebook users and its ad revenue has declined to $180 million from the peak of $605 million, Timberlake is taking on an ownership stake in MySpace as a member of Specific Media, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The pop star, who last year won critical acclaim for his portrayal of Sean Parker, one of Facebook's early leaders, will drive the creative strategy at Myspace, according to Specific Media co-founder Tim Vanderhook.

"Regardless of the current perception of the Myspace brand, it's one of the small group of brands that has international prominence and a global traffic base of almost 100 million people going to it every month. We are very focused on reinvigorating the brand. Our vision is to bring it back to what it was supposed to be originally,'' Vanderhook said.

Outlining MySpace's new focus, Timberlake said in a statement, "There's a need for a place where fans can go to interact with their favorite entertainers, listen to music, watch videos, share and discover cool stuff and just connect.

"Myspace has the potential to be that place ... art is inspired by people and vice versa, so there is a natural social component to entertainment. I am excited to help revitalize Myspace by using its social media platform to bring artists and fans together in one community."