How To Save MySpace -response

My response to Jason Nazar's insightful article on the changes MySpace needs to make to remain viable. Too long for his comments, I had to put my reply here. Please continue the discussion either here or there or both.

Response to Jason's article:
I still love MySpace so love that you're thinking of ways to improve the experience there. Some of your ideas are fantastic and could, with some conceptual thinking, not only be made workable, but innovative. However, some I don't think would work and/or as a MySpace user would not look favorably upon.
#1.) MySpace = Yahoo 2.0: Turn MySpace into the Next-Generation Portal
The name MySpace means something to the general public, especially avid users like myself so altering that perception can have adverse effects on user experience/usage. The log-in page makes it MY space. Part of my identity. You already can access articles/profiles/etc.. w/o logging in. You just can't comment/message/add friend/etc.. unless you're a logged in member. Moving the log in to a side bar on the new home page is okay. Less visible, but still part of the home page.

2.) A Micropayment Ecosystem for ALL Digital Goods
All of the above are available through various plugins, but I agree MySpace should aggregate and own specific easy to use programs that make a purchase part of the MySpace experience. Free music is great and is still the primary focus of visitors to MySpace. However making the sale is the motivation of artists/bands having the music up there in the first place.

3.) Local News Online & More Valuable User Generated Content
I absolutely love the local news concept. I'd go one further and have a section specifically for local MUSIC news. Want to know what your favorite local band's doing lately? Go to MySpaceMusicNews, type in your band's name into Search and there ya go.
If you just want local news/blogs, go to MySpaceNews. My space should include news from my home area. The concept has continuity with the MySpace brand. And, as local blogging is becoming very popular, MySpace could become THE aggregator of local blogs, music or otherwise. Music insiders could use the local blog concept to post to instead of their more general and/or national blog w/a link for local fans/musicians, giving them another profile to deepen their own status as well as giving them a platform for local news their nationwide/international followers might not be interested in.
I like your suggestion about Word Press as a blogging system for MySpace. In order to attract good bloggers, MySpace HAS to fix it's blogging system. I transferred my own blog from MySpace to Blogspot because I lost over 25 posts into the MySpace ether. They're simply not there anymore. Poof. I was not a NOT a happy camper about the MySpace blogging experience and that was what started my 'slide' to other sites instead of MySpace.
I'm not sure about turning MySpace into a Mahalo-type site. It just doesn't fit with the MySpace brand to me. Maybe as a side benefit?
4.) Court Star Power
Ashton Kutcher and Oprah attracted TEMPORARY users to Twitter. Those users still have IDs there, they just don't participate. MySpace needs participants. Besides, there's quite a few 'stars' who have MySpace profiles. Make it worth their while to promote their MySpace profiles instead of other site(s), including their own website (or in addition to) and you could achieve much more real user interaction on as much as the public go where the stars are, especially those stars who know marketing. Bring Joe Public and his/her music/local news interest to MySpace and the stars will come back.
"Make the Status updates an exclusive benefit that ONLY celebrities and famous people get, and move millions of users to follow those select groups of evangelists."
IMHO that is the quickest way to kill MySpace outright. It's MY space, not Ashton's, nor Oprah's, etc.. Perhaps you aren't aware of the huge backlash on Twitter against the recent celeb push. I'm an avid Twitterer so was there reading the updates in real time. Angry updates. The common Tweeter was made to feel useless as it was all about how @aplusk was trying to get 1 million followers. Whoop -dee -do! During the mess that was created, our Twitter streams were full of those who were just fans of @plusk or Oprah, not interested in us 'common folk' other than as another number on their wall. Followers got unfollowed quickly if all they 'updated' was about or to celebs. Jokes were made, hashtags created, temporary users abandoned their new IDs and Twitter returned to normal.
As for the friends concept, it's understood not all on friends' list are actually 'friends'. It's just a word. Make it connections/contacts/associates/whatever. I don't think it's that important to anyone.
5.) Fuel Micro Jobs
I love the concept, but, as an online research assistant who went through the 'make money online' website reviews religiously for a while, it might garner MySpace more trouble than it's worth. There are too many rip-0ff sites out there claiming to help people make money online by data processing, etc... and the last thing MySpace would want is to get the name for aggregating them into one site. And, you're worried about MySpace spam now? Open it up to those type sites and MySpace would have to have a separate department just to get rid of spam accounts.
Having individual MySpace users set up professional profiles advertising their services and/or an Elance.com type site would work if done carefully and with a different TOS for professionals offering services. Using the same TOS and procedures already in place for bands should work easily.
6.) New Product Releases Every Month & A Rock Star Product Evangelist
An evangelist, yes. New programs every month, not necessarily. I'm happy with sites that just let me be me without interfering too much with the experience. Forget new apps all the time. They're just confusing and frustrating to a lot of people.
7.) Hustle & Chutzpa
I totally agree. MySpace is still a very viable company/destination site and I'd love to find myself looking forward once again to logging in and experiencing MySpace my way.