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Specifically, MySpace and Microsoft announced today that the MySpace website will be available for Windows Mobile this summer. In addition, they announced that MySpace would be supporting Microsoft's Silverlight platform (a rival to the popular Adobe Flash), especially for the creation of applications on its developer platform.
Confused yet? It's a lot of partnerships and technology integration to announce all at once. It is also a very interesting move for both companies. This announcement adds a new dynamic to the rivalry between Google and Microsoft: Google already has a multi-million dollar deal with MySpace, while Microsoft owns a small chunk of MySpace rival Facebook and helps power its search and advertising platforms. It will make these relationships even more complicated and something to watch for over the next year.
MySpace for Windows Mobile
The first announcement was that MySpace would be available for Windows Mobile phones. MySpace is already available for the iPhone, Blackberry, and even for Google's Android platform, but has avoided making a version for Windows Mobile until now. With the advent of a Windows Mobile version, MySpace will be available on almost every mobile smartphone.
The Windows Mobile version of MySpace will be available this summer for Windows Mobile 6.1 phones and for the Windows Mobile Marketplace this fall. In addition, LG phones will have the MySpace application pre-installed.
Silverlight for MySpace's OpenSocial Platform
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The second major announcement revolved around Silverlight, Microsoft's challenger to Adobe Flash, which is installed on nearly every computer in the world and runs on popular websites like YouTube. MySpace and Microsoft have released an Open Source kit that will help developers create applications that utilize Silverlight.
However, there was no announcement about MySpace's own use of Silverlight. MySpace Video, one of the worlds largest video website, currently uses Adobe Flash to run its videos. This could be interesting to watch, especially if the partnership strengthens.
The MySpace / Facebook / Microsoft / Google Relationship
The partnership between MySpace and Microsoft on Silverlight and Windows Mobile are good first steps for fostering a deeper partnership. The partnership, however, should raise some eyebrows and concerns with the leadership over at Google and Microsoft. Google paid around $900 million dollars for a multi-year search partnership deal with MySpace. Microsoft paid $240 million dollars to buy a small piece of Facebook at a valuation of $15 billion dollars. It also has the rights to run Facebook's advertising platform and has a search deal with the social networking giant.