Currently reporting over 100 million members, MySpace attracts around 500,000 new members each day. Each member creates a personal or band profile and submits content to the site in the form of blogs, photos, music and comments. Each member can also send other member's messages and, with the recent popularity of the site, it is now common for many commercial enterprises to create their own profiles.
But what is so different about this, I hear you ask?
The unique factor that will appeal to the majority of the member bands on MySpace is the ability to contact and sell their music to their fans through a direct communication channel, a place where their fans naturally visit and invite the band to be their 'friend'. This type of direct communication to a tight network of established fans is a rare opportunity for any band, especially as the social networking giant boasts a member base covering a key market demographic for today's music industry. The advantages of this system is that it benefits those bands that have been able to utilise MySpace to expand their fan base to cover areas where they may not be able to visit, as now they also sell them their music.
Being able to directly contact fans all over the internet and sell them their own music sounds like a dream come true for those bands that have not yet established themselves within the commercial music arena. It allows music to be promoted in a fashion controlled by the band and offers a powerful alternative to the current, and well established, iTunes.
"The goal is to be one of the biggest digital music stores out there." MySpace co-founder Chris DeWolfe told Reuters in an interview recently. "Everyone we've spoken to definitely wants an alternative to iTunes and the iPod. MySpace could be that alternative."
With the number of bands registered on MySpace rocketing it is no surprise to find signed bands within the ranks along with a large number of mainly underground and independent record labels. The impact of this testing will prove insightful to those setting the prices.
Currently, MySpace allows bands or those with music profiles to host up to four tracks, which can be played back by a users visiting the profile. MySpace now aims to allow for those tracks to be purchased, downloaded and even transferred to portable music players.
The social networking market online is clearly heating up. With MySpace exploring avenues such as the music seller service to utilise its growing member base and YouTube, the online video site, outlining its goal to provide every pop video ever made on its site, the relationship between online social networking and music looks set to be a long and fruitful adventure.
