Why didn’t Google buy Myspace and is it too late?

This question has not been brought up on many occasions. Maybe its because some people do not think Google’s “don’t be evil” mantra and Fox News’ outlook do not seem to match, but one thing is for sure, Google ads work well on MySpace. In fact, Google could have bought Myspace for about the same amount of money it has put in to the site in order to secure its advertising deal… In other words think of the ROI Google could have made by buying Myspace.

If the money would not have been enough, maybe a Google backed Myspace would be stronger to fight back at Facebook, which seems to be growing and slowly overtaking Myspace. Maybe not in the number of members yet, but it is clear that Myspace seems tired and Facebook is wired. But, in the internet world this can all change fast.

Could Google still purchase Myspace? That is a tough one. Is there a right price at which both News Corp and Google would be willing to agree. News Corp purchased MySpace for just under $600 million, but now with every newspaper and magazine talking about Facebook, rumors of a potential IPO and a potential $15 billion valuation; would Rupert Murdoch consider selling? I do not think Google would nor could afford the expensive price tag for either Facebook or Myspace.

Apparently, according to some cnet article and some analysts, Myspace could reach the $15 billion valuation in 3 years. I do not know how that number was come up with, but it seems like there may be just a little tiny bit of a web 2.0 bubble around social networking. Within 3 years, Facebook could be worth $90 billion at this rate or probably more like $5-6 billion once the hype dies down…

Tags: , facebook, google, ipo, myspace, news corp, Rupert Murdoch, social networks, web 2.0