Did he quit ofrwas he pushed? That’s the question on everyone’s lips in the internet biz after Myspace co-President Jason Hirschhorn announced his intention to quit after only four months in the job. Co-President Mike Jones is expected to be named the new CEO, while News Limited chief digital officer Jon Miller has put out the usual breezy PR spin statement saying “We fully respect Jason’s decision to leave and his personal desire to return to New York. As many people know, Jason is like family to me, and as expected, he’s done everything we asked of him and more. We’re incredibly grateful for the passion and enthusiasm he brought to the company. And as I know Jason agrees, Mike Jones has done an outstanding job leading MySpace into its next evolution and is the right person to take the reins. There are no plans to bring in additional management.”
After losing a rumoured $US150 million in the 2009 financial year which was buried amongst the ‘other’ category in the News Limited annual report, and staff morale plummeting, suddenly Rupert Murdoch’s ‘genius’ move in buying Myspace for $US580 million in July 2005 looks less and less impressive. Apparently the music division is the only part of Myspaz making any money and with electronic tumbleweeds floating through it, Murdoch needs all the cost savings he can get.
