So Long, Friendster!

Friendster, one of the earlier versions of a social network -- back in the days when "social network" wasn't even coined yet -- announced to the social web world that has left it behind to once again give it another look, just so users could clean out their stuff before it does a permanent purge on May 31. It's spring cleaning to the tune of a virtual social suicide as Friendster gracefully bows out of the social media game, at the top of which Facebook sits as its king (for now).  But, Friendster isn't really going away.  No -- it'll just get a makeover.

Money Online (MOL), the Malaysian company that bought Friendster in 2009, will attempt to reinvent the old giant into -- wait for it -- a gaming and music social network. Say what?

Check out the full story right here: Social Network Pioneer Friendster To Erase All User Photos, Blogs And More On May 31

Why am I not sad nor excited?  Three simple reasons:

• MySpace tried that already...and failed miserably.
  
  Reinventing the wheel doesn't mean making another circle and coloring it blue.  To reinvent something that's become a part of life, you need to look at it from a different angle or perspective. That way, you'll see what else hasn't been done or was overdone and redesign it based on what you will use it for.
  
  When MySpace "reinvented" itself into a social gaming and music portal, people were confused because, by then, Facebook (thanks in large part to Zynga) had already claimed a huge chunk of the "gaming social network", while music websites like Pandora and Last.fm had already settled into their thrones in the "music social network".
  
  
• We have more than enough gaming and music social networks, I think.
  
  As a sampling:
  GAME ON: Top 5 Social Networks for Gamers
  Rock On: 12 of the Best Music Social Networks
  
  Friendster is setting itself up for more upsets by doing what has already been done. MOL has to ask itself, what else hasn't been done? There must still be some other way that people interact in real life that they could be translated into the virtual world. Just look at Twitter, Quora, Foursquare, Reeboonz, Digg, Groupon, GroupMe, Tumblr, Lumosity, Kickstarter.  Surely there is something that hasn't been explored yet.
  
  
• Friendster has become irrelevant.
  
  I opened my account in 2002 and actively used it till 2003. It soon became difficult to use because of several unnecessary layout changes (take a hint, Facebook) that only made navigation confusing. Over the next 3 years after that, I would log in only every 4-6 months. Each of my occasional logins never went beyond an hour (average of 10 minutes) because, my head would hurt from trying to make sense of the messy layout.   The last time I logged in, I logged back out in less than a minute (I kid you not).  I finally deleted that account in mid-2006.  No love was lost because, by then, I was already deep into something that had become more relevant.  In fact, it's what made me quit Friendster back in 2003: blogging.
  

Friendster/MOL, if you want to keep up with the social media game, surprise us. Become relevant again.