Is Facebook really about to lose iLike to Myspace? Yes, it certainly appears to be true, according to TechCrunch. In what could be one of the trickier twists and turns in the world of music and social media, music-centered MySpace is reported to have made a deal to acquire iLike for $20 million. Rumor has it that the deal may close as early as this week, though many say that it's far from being complete.
iLike, the developer of the largest music application on the Facebook Platform has nearly 10 million monthly active users and is one of the two applications formerly deemed “Great Apps” by Facebook itself.
While many wonder why the $20 million offer amount seems low (iLike has been valued at $53 million during its last round of funding in 2006), many speculate that the price has a great deal to do with the possibility that Facebook could elect to abandon the application once MySpace takes over. Since a significant portion of iLike’s active users access the application through Facebook, the rejection of the app by the social media giant could seriously hinder iLike’s growth trajectory.
To add to the juicy nature of this whole affair, as if it weren’t already overflowing with irony, one only has to realize that if the deal actually goes through, it will be new MySpace CEO (and former Facebook COO and CRO) Owen van Natta’s first major acquisition since taking on the mantle of leadership at his former employer’s main competition. Accomplishing this feat would also solidify the position MySpace holds as the leading platform for musicians to build their identity and distribute content across social networks.
With the offer still in play, MySpace will certainly come out the winner if it can seal the deal.
Oh, and one more interesting wrinkle in this whole equation. iLike has just launched its own music download store. Currently MySpace Music’s download engine is powered by Amazon. With iLike in hand, it’s highly probably that the future of the Amazon/MySpace collaboration may also be in question.
Stay tuned, there are bound to be more unexpected plot twists in this already intriguing corporate drama.
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Comments
Merge, purge, regurge.... Sounds like the music industry has a few things in common with the big pharma and health insurance industries.
So true.
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