MySpace musician POV (Score 1)

MySpace was created, in part, to bring new independant music to folks who might like it. It continues to do that very well. It is not all teenagers and the old men. Connections made on MySpace have provided me with significant opportunities, press, and sales. I have information about who listens to my music that is highly valuable to me (and useful as I negotiate deals with labels and plan tour stops). I rely on other people finding me there throught their networks and do not send unwelcome advertisements. The site is open to abuse and traditional mass marketing, however. Friend-request bots, scrapers, and other automated marketing tools allow for the equivalent of MySpam. All media eventually become advertising venues, and the big fish come on-board eventually. So, no surprise there. I think MySpace is a viable marketing tool. To me there is a difference between the "customer" supporting independant musicians and the customer being a part of a large corporate database used for mass marketing and who knows what else. I doubt the government will ever ask me for my mailing list. Speaking with little to no background in advertising, it seems that perhaps the real value of the site is that it provides a clear visual model of how people share information socially online. Perhaps it even holds the key to the mystery of why dumbass film shorts become must-see "viral videos." Regardless, I predict that MySpace will be gone before we know it, especially if it is, indeed, largely populated by teenage girls. If there is one thing I remember about them is that they have a very short attention span (ok, there are two things I remember... they also aren't interested in freshman boys who play the clarinet and wear Hound Dog Taylor t-shirts).