New chief executive for MySpace

Social networking site MySpace, which is owned by NewsCorp, has named Owen Van Natta as its new chief executive, replacing former executive Chris DeWitt.

Van Natta, who has worked at rival site Facebook as vice president of operations and chief revenue officer, has also held executive roles at Amazon.com and Playlist.

“Owen combines a deep understanding of social networking, a keen business sense and the operational experience to guide MySpace through its next phase of growth,” said Jonathan Miller, NewsCorp chief digital officer and chief executive of digital media.

“I am confident his leadership will be an invaluable asset.”

Van Natta is being handed the major task of refocusing the site, after it dropped from the most popular social networking site to losing hundreds of thousands of users. Many of its former users have moved to Facebook.

“I am thrilled to have the privilege to pilot MySpace in what is sure to be an incredibly exciting and rewarding next chapter for the business,” Van Natta said.