• TechCrunch, Friday, October 17, 2008 11:15 AM

Critics scoffed at Fox when it shelled out $580 million for MySpace back in 2005, well before the company showed signs of profit or was even monetized in any significant way. But now, three years later, TechCrunch declares it money well spent.

Fox Interactive Media -- which is mostly MySpace -- earned about $850 million in revenues during the fiscal year that ended in June, and is projected to hit $1 billion next year. And MySpace is profitable. It now employs 1,600 people worldwide, compared to just 150 in October 2005 -- that's more than a tenfold increase. And though Facebook may have the momentum, MySpace's network has continued to grow in size, with 73 million unique visitors a month in the U.S., reaching nearly 40 percent of the population.

Of course, traffic doesn't necessarily mean profits for a social network. But MySpace has been unveiling a lot of initiatives lately that could. Programs like MySpace Music and MyAds, which could make Rupert Murdoch look like a digital guru in another three years.

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