Slingshot Labs

Slingshot Labs was a media and business incubator owned by News Corp that was launched on February 13, 2008.^[1] Slingshot was separate from News Corp's Fox Interactive Media, and its mission is to build and develop new Web ventures for the parent company.^[2] The incubator was founded by some of Myspace's founding members, Josh Berman Colin DiGiaro, and was headquartered in Santa Monica, California. It was operated by Josh Berman and Diego Berdakin prior to its shutdown in 2010.

Company history

The launch of Slingshot Labs came nearly a year and a half after Myspace's primary competitor, Facebook, announced a US$10 million fund to invest in software companies that build applications for its social network.^[3] Comparisons to Facebook's fund swirled around the company's launch, but News Corp and Myspace execs did not acknowledge them. Current CEO of Myspace, Chris DeWolfe, explained to BusinessWeek,^[4] "This is my baby, my idea, and something I've wanted to do for a long time." Both DeWolfe and News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch have been involved with the company's initial stages; it was seeded by News Corp with US$15 million and 40 employees.^[4]

CEO of Myspace Chris Dewolfe

Company Portfolio

The company planned to develop four to five ventures per year,^[5] ranging from stand-alone web destinations to social media applications. It recently launched a celebrity gossip site Daily Fill,^[6] which aggregates content from partner sites such as The New York Post's Page Six, Media Take Out, and Gossip Girls.

Shutdown

Slingshot Labs was shut down by its parent company in May, 2010.^[7]

References