Myspace, the social network that dominated the internet before Facebook swept it aside, is planning a revival under its current owners, who say they want to build a platform that feels fundamentally different from the algorithm-driven, endless-scroll experience that has drawn widespread criticism of today's major platforms.

Brothers Tim and Chris Vanderhook, who own Myspace, have announced plans to relaunch the platform with a new vision. In a recent documentary about the platform, the pair acknowledged they had previously attempted to rebuild it entirely but that the effort had not succeeded. Tom Anderson, Myspace's co-founder and once everyone's automatic first friend on the site, sold the company in 2005 and is not expected to be involved in the relaunch.

Myspace first launched in 2003 and became one of the biggest social networking websites in the world, known for its customisable profiles, music features, and Top Friends list. Between 2005 and 2008 it was considered the most popular social media platform globally, drawing around 115 million monthly visitors at its peak before Facebook overtook it in both global and US traffic, triggering a mass exodus around 2010.

Analysts are cautious about the revival's prospects. The generation most likely to feel nostalgia for the platform are described as "busy midlife adults with careers and families" who are unlikely to take up posting on another social channel. To succeed, the Vanderhooks would need to build a meaningfully different product and focus on attracting Gen Z and Gen Alpha rather than the millennial audience that remembers the original. No relaunch date has been announced.