MySpace Tests New Profile & Leaves the Dutch Behind

Yesterday Mike Arrington reported about the launch of a new MySpace profile which integrates a drag and drop interface. The profile is currently under testing via MySpace Canada which can be accessed here. The interface provides users with the ability to drag and drop modules within their profile as well as select custom backgrounds from a simple interface.

This entire push is part of a redesign which started back in June and they are now beginning to test out the new profile interface. One interesting feature is that all applications that you’ve installed will show up in the modules area of the new profile interface. This is not a place for new applications to get your attention though … at least not yet. I’d hope that MySpace would open up one more area that lets you browse through “popular modules among your friends” or something along those lines.

Modifying Design for MySpace Profile

Editing Modules for MySpace Profile

One other piece of news regarding MySpace is that they will give up on the Netherlands according to Techcrunch. Apparently the company underestimated the ability of the leading social network to maintain their ground. This is a similar challenge that Facebook has faced in Germany where the company is finding it challenging to compete with StudiVZ. Interesting enough, MySpace is trying to make things a little more complicated for both StudiVZ and Facebook and is now moving their office from Holland to Berlin, Germany.

It’s clear that becoming successful abroad is not an overnight process and that the large social networks are going to have to invest heavily. For comparison purposes, Facebook currently has approximately 325,000 users in the Netherlands whereas MySpace has around 650,000 and Hyves (the leader in the Netherlands) has over 5 million. We’ll be keeping an eye on the international expansion of both Facebook and MySpace.