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Will MySpace Earn Money?

MySpace is officially America`s most popular Web site, according to a recent study, representing 4.46 percent of all Internet traffic. However, there are experts who claim that the popularity itself is not enough if it does not make money.

The main problem of MySpace is the fact that only banner advertising is used on the site, which is the most unprofitable way of advertising on a Web site, since banner advertisers are only supposed to make an "impression" on a site`s visitor. Sponsored links, for instance, which leads directly to a business`s Web site, would make much more money.

So where does MySpace get its money from? Exactly where Google gets it from. It assures advertisers they will be sited in an exact context they choose. The same way Google ties the ads they sell more closely to an advertiser`s bottom line. It means that MySpace would have to start offering Web search, the best of which is social search. It`s the kind of search found on Google, Yahoo and MSN. It works with the help of the members, who tag the pages with searchable keywords. Social search`s results are very useful and relevant, and can be sold to a social network by using the profile info of the hundred million people in MySpace to weight a search. So the potential is there, MySpace has just to search for it.