News Corp. has tapped Allen & Co. to field buyout interest for MySpace and has heard from about 50 parties, people familiar with the process told Reuters Friday.

The global media conglomerate is considering a handful of options for MySpace, the once-hot Internet social network that has fallen far behind faster moving rival Facebook.
One source close to the process said an auction for MySpace has not started.

Justin Siegel, chief executive of JNJ Mobile, owner of MocoSpace, said Friday that he was among the interested parties to have reached out to News Corp. after the media company signaled it may put MySpace on the block.

Siegel said he expected to pay up to $200 million for MySpace, but admitted he was speculating.

“I would be willing to hazard a guess the price is between $50 million to $200 million,” Siegel said in an interview. “They have not circulated the sales package yet.”

MocoSpace said in November that Mark Jung, a former chief operating officer of News Corp.’s Fox Interactive Media, the division that includes MySpace, joined MocoSpace’s board.

News Corp. declined to comment.

Siegel, who co-founded the mobile social network MocoSpace, said he was also once interested in purchasing Bebo, another once hot Internet social network.

“We would’ve bought it if we had known what AOL was selling it for,” Siegel said. “We heard a rumor AOL was looking for $200 million. In reality they sold it for $10 million.”

He added: “If I had known that …  I would have shown up with a suitcase full of cash.”

SoftBank Capital and General Catalyst Partners are investors in MocoSpace. Bloomberg first reported MocoSpace’s interest.