By Dayo Farore
US singer/actor, Justin Timberlake has bought into MySpace, the once leading social network on Wednesday, June 29, 2011 as it gradually loses in worth and fan-base to leading social networks Facebook and Twitter
The company was bought over by Irvine-based Specific Media, founded in 1999 by Tim Vanderhook and his brothers Chris and Russell. Specific Media is a digital business helps marketers buy ads on websites, mobile devices and Internet TV. The deal according to confirmed reports was made at an undisclosed amount (though many claim it sold between US $30 – 40 Million) inside the Encounter Restaurant at the Los Angeles International Airport, California. Justin Timberlake will help to guide its new creative direction and strategy and return some star power to the site.
As we recall, Timberlake played Sean Parker, the former President of Facebook in the 2010 ‘movie, ‘The Social Network’, the story about the founding of the website. Sean Parker in real life was the brain who allegedly helped Facebook Inc. founder, Mark Zuckerberg secure financing for his leading social network. Just earlier this week, Timberlake stated, ‘There’s a need for a place where fans can go to interact with their favourite entertainers, listen to music, watch videos, share and discover cool stuff and just connect… MySpace has the potential to be that place’.
Timberlake is not a newbie in the league of entertainers-turn-entrepreneurs; he has been in the business with his clothing line, William Rast. Many other artistes are beginning to venture into more businesses outside music.
