WebProNews

MySpace is partnering with casual gaming company Oberon Media to create a new gaming channel on the social networking site.

MySpace Games will allow members of the site to place games on their profile pages and play them with other MySpace members. Users will be able to chat during the games and invite others to play.

"Bringing entertainment in the form of fun, social, casual games will enhance our user experience," said Amit Kapur, VP of Business Development for MySpace. "Our goal is to provide our members with an easy way to play with their friends and give them with additional ways to interact."

MySpace Games is scheduled to launch in January and will offer hundreds of free games aimed at the casual gaming crowd. Casual games brought in $380 million in revenue last year in the U.S. while console games brought in $4.7 billion in sales, according to estimates by Pacific Crest Securities and NPD Group.

The two companies are asking developers to submit their ideas for new forms of social gaming to myspace@oberon-media.com.