• Fortune, Wednesday, September 19, 2007 11:01 AM

For all the talk about MySpace vs. Facebook, there are vast differences between social networking's top two; they might even be able to coexist peacefully. Content-wise, MySpace and Facebook couldn't be more different. There's a strong hint of old media to the former's model for expansion, while Facebook is about the development of new software to help its users interact with one another.

For example, News Corp. content has become a big part of MySpace's stickiness strategy. Clips from Fox shows like "The Simpsons" and "24" have helped it become the second most-popular video site on the Web. MySpace continues to be a driving force in music; thousands of artists have profiles and the company even has its own record label. Expect MySpace to soon move into TV and film and production.

Over at Facebook, the focus seems to be on software. The 40 million-strong social network--which represents less than half of MySpace's registered total--has never licensed content and probably never will. Even so, MySpace execs have a Facebook obsession, while Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says, "I've never really considered us competitors."

Read the whole story at Fortune »