Deeper Into The Shadows Of MySpace

MySpace.com has garnered a lot of attention lately as the 70 million member website became teen phenom. Though the loyal membership was richly concerned with the News Corp. buyout, many have noted that Intermix Media had cloudy and questionable history. This is Part 2 of a two-part series. For Part 1 click never occurred to the charter members of MySpace, that being run by a media juggernaut like News Corp. would be a positive. Perhaps coinciding with News Corp.'s purchase of Intermix (the reference here posts these two happenings on the same day), the MySpace terms of use were conspicuously changed. The earlier version (i.e., pre-News Corp.) was much more exploitative of users. By posting Content on any public area of MySpace.com, you automatically grant as well as represent and warrant that you have the right to grant to MySpace.com an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, fully paid, worldwide license to use, copy, perform, display, and distribute such information and content to MySpace.com. MySpace.com has the right to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into other works, such information and content, and to grant and authorize sublicenses of the foregoing. It was changed, according to the sued Intermix Media, alleging that the firm was the source of spyware and adware secretly installed on millions of home computers. Intermix settled out of court for $7.9 million. But before the suit, there was an investigation, according to Intermix founder and largest shareholder Brad Greenspan, who left the company in 2003. Greenspan filed suit himself, also alleges that Intermix was sold on the cheap to News Corp. without offering competitors like Viacom the opportunity to make a competing bid. Intermix, along with their prize possession MySpace, was sold to News Corp. for $580 million - a deal where Google's Eric Schmidt (Greenspan alleges) told Rupert Murdoch that acquiring the company would be "the best deal of his life." Why were the executives of Intermix so quick to sell their brand to News Corp.? Greenspan says: According to the proposed agreement, News Corp. has agreed to indemnify and pay for all the misdeeds of the Intermix Board of Directors (even criminal acts), rather than obligating these individuals to pay out of their own pockets. I believe that the Board and certain executives would face financial exposure totaling upwards of $150 million for lawsuits and other fines for insider trading and other misdeeds. With this ominous burden in mind, the Intermix Board was personally motivated to stick exclusively to the proposed News Corp. deal to eliminate their personal financial exposure. News Corp. spokesman Andrew Butcher called Greenspan's lawsuit against Intermix "frivolous," and expressed confusion about the event. "He voted for the deal (to sell to News Corp.). He seems to be suing after the event." With all of these allegations in mind, the MySpace faithful might find that a News Corp. MySpace is freer of mind than an Intermix MySpace. Chris DeWolfe, Tom Anderson, Intermix, and Fox Media's Ross Levinsohn could not be reached for comment. Tag: | document.write("Email murdok here.") Drag this to your Bookmarks. Add to document.write("Del.icio.us") Yahoo My Web