Re-gentrification can be an ugly word these days. It can get people up in arms, but the process is a reality in the physical realm, and is quite possibly becoming a reality in the virtual domain. After discussing the ghettofication of MySpace in a different blogt post – re-gentrification is one of the possible next phases. There’s also pure renovation and rebuilding but those can come with a hefty price tag, and if profit is a motive of Myspace, I’m not sure they are likely to happen.

To set the stage, we’ll begin with a romanticized version of the classic case study of New York’s East Village in the 1950′s. Attracted by the cheap cost of living and the grit of the rundown part of town, hipsters flocked to the Village. By the 1960s, re-gentrification was in full swing; they had revived the market for housing, speciality shops, and much to their chagrin commercialized the neighborhoods.

As I look for the hipsters of our virtual era, I see the bands, musicians, and artists that flock to MySpace. It’s gritty, ghetto, and no holds barred. These Indie Rockers dream of the Arctic Monkeys viral launch to stardom, and hope to achieve fame by pandering mp3s, media, concert dates, and the depths of their souls to a world of MySpace groupies. These hipsters are just like the East Village hipsters; they are reviving the market for MySpace and exposing all sorts of monetary opportunities for not only themselves, but The Man. And as much as they’re against it, they are setting the stage for MySpace to be re-gentrified.

MySpace may revive its brand by owning music in a way that iTunes, Amazon, and last.fm can’t – by providing e-commerce opportunities for signed and unsigned bands, and realizing MySpace as “A place for music.” Moving forward with the commercialization strategy could come with the cost of booting the originals out of their space, much in the same way that residents are forced to move from a re-gentrified area due to increased taxes, rent, and other costs.

We’re just now at a point, where decisions to rejuvenate once popular domains are presenting themselves. This is our chance at a do-over, and not to repeat mistakes we made in the physical domain. Given that choice – should we continue the path of re-gentrification? Or is there another way? I think the answer lies partly in how we get value recognized for user generated content. Should it be monetized? or is there a whole new system evolving? These are big questions that minds around the world are racing to figure out, but will the answer come soon enough to keep re-gentrification out of the virtual space?