MySpace’s New Strategy: Targeting Latinos

MySpace is losing a social media war with Facebook, but MySpace has launched a campaign to revamp its site and try to get back on par with Facebook’s 500 million-plus users and accompanying revenue stream.

In a press release, MySpace says its working to “redefine the company as a social entertainment destination for Gen Y.”  Which, basically, means they want to not be the secondary social network for everyone but teenagers anymore.

Central to this goal are Latinos, primarily because they are very young — the core demographic of MySpace’s users. From the release:

“With young Hispanics, 16 to 25, making up 18 percent of the U.S. Gen Y population and approximately 20 percent of MySpace users, the redesign will be particularly attractive to the fast-growing bicultural young Hispanic market segment. Hispanic youth are characterized as the country’s fastest-growing market segment; early adopters to social media; trend setters; and technology savvy.”

¡Ay mira nomas!

So, basically what MySpace is saying is they’re focusing on Latinos because they’re young, a rapidly expanding consumer market, they like social media and technology, and because they’re a large part of the population they are trend setters. And this makes perfect sense, because one out of six people in the U.S. are Latino, they have trillions of dollars to spend and they are extremely influential, as witnessed by their sway this electoral season.