News Corp. is partnering 50-50 with Softbank Corp. on a JV called My Space Japan. If this sounds familiar, it’s because UBS analyst Aryeh Bourkoff told investors last June that such a JV was expected. The initial launch was expected in September but apparently the deal only now is being finalized and could be announced later this week. Plans call for the PC version to launch first, followed by mobile.
In Japan, stocks involving Mixi, the hottest social network on the island, and Softbank tumbled with the announcement:
Shares of Mixi Inc., Japan's most popular online social network site, tumbled 10 percent to 2.07 million yen by the midday break due to investor concerns about a new competitor.
Softbank's shares fell 1.84 percent to 2,395 yen, while the benchmark Nikkei average was down 0.7 percent.
Softbank's internet arm, Yahoo Japan, has a competing service.
