On the Internet when it comes to social networking sites, fads come and go. We saw this in Friendster as that user group quickly switched over to Myspace. Let's face it, people get tired of the same old thing. When it comes to social networking sites, being everything to everyone just doesn't work.
Giving away something for free and trying to find another way to monetize your existence is a drunken sailors crap shoot. Searching for something that just isn't there is a terrible way to run a company. When sites like these mature, they quickly find that their strategy switches to a means of keeping visitors, rather than trying to offer value that would want to keep them there. The problem is, the value is in the eye of the beholder. And when you give away something free, people continue to expect it.
Below is a chart showing the comparison in reach between Myspace and Facebook. As one can see, Myspace is spiraling downhill to what will likely be its eventual death.
