If you think your business, music band, or simply, your personality could benefit from participating in one of the most heavily trafficked sites on the internet then you need to know what MySpace is and how to get involved with it.

First of all, what is MySpace?

Well, in a nutshell, MySpace is a gargantuan (and controversial) network of user-submitted webpages hosted at MySpace.com. This collection of webpages allows MySpace members to interact with one another by making friends, posting comments, publishing bulletins, writing blogs, sending emails and more.

MySpace.com is the undisputed leader of social networking sites and continues to dwarf other would-be contenders like FaceBook, Xanga and Bebo. It currently has over 138 million user accounts which —even after taking into consideration individuals with multiple accounts— could easily amount to over 50 million unique members. The majority of MySpace members are (contrary to popular belief) over 25 years of age. Controversy over corporate history, horribly designed pages, copyright violations and the safety of underage users has over the years given MySpace a 'bad-boy' image which has only served to heighten its appeal and popularity.

One of the most alluring features of MySpace (and also one of the most maligned) is the ability to fully customize a MySpace page by embedding a CSS stylesheet. Many external sites now specialize in the creation and distribution of premade CSS stylesheets specifically designed to customize MySpace pages. These premade stylesheets —which typically link to background images hosted on external servers— are known as 'MySpace layouts'.

Ultimately, MySpace is now an immense marketing opportunity which entices celebrities, rock bands and even major motion picture producers to sign up for a MySpace account in order to enjoy free exposure to a thrill-seeking demographic numbering in the tens of millions. Talk is beginning to circulate that MySpace's popularity is waning but traffic statistics over the last year don't support this (and actually speak to the contrary). Moreover, Google has recently signed a 3 year deal spanning into the second quarter of 2010 which will culminate in MySpace coffers being filled to the tune of $900 million.