Is Greed Going to Kill MySpace?

Considering I'm one of four people in my age bracket who doesn't have a MySpace, it won't bother me if it does.

Last week, PhotoBucket became the latest of Rupert's outlaws. The company, a photo- and video-sharing service, had its videos, remixes and slideshows blocked from MySpace. Why? PhotoBucket users were displaying slideshow widgets containing a Spiderman 3 ad.

A MySpace spokesperson explained that the company makes a big distinction between promotion (as in pushing your indie band) and advertising (as in posting slideshows skinned with a promo for a major motion picture from Sony, a Fox competitor). Such advertising is verboten by MySpace -- as is any instance in which users get paid to post something. Consider, for instance, Indie911's Hoooka widgets, which give posters 10 percent of each sale.

Source: Note to Everyone: MySpace Is Not the Web. Get Ready to Move On -

I have mixed feelings here.  On the one hand, I think MySpace is a bastion for illiteracy and stupidity, as well as horrendously bad web design, and therefore its death wouldn't be a bad thing.  On the other hand, I'd hate to see anything happen that benefits Rupert Murdoch.  So I guess I'll just hope he loses his $580 million on MySpace because Google comes up with something better.