UniVillage.com: new social networking site for students

Co-founder of Lastminute.com Brent Hoberman has decided to give the social networking scene a go, and picked the university student niche by launching UniVillage.com.

It's designed for undergraduates, so if you went to uni over 10 years ago, you probably aren't welcome. Indeed, when you sign up you have to say which year you're currently in, and you wouldn't lie would you?

Students who are receiving their A level results are being targeted. The site has three themes: profiles, music, and club listings.

Profiles is fairly obvious, allowing students to show their pasty faces and talk about their wide-ranging knowledge of lager and spirits (darn, I told myself I wasn't going to be mean about students any more...)

Music is where unsigned bands can upload their tracks - not sure whether the bands have to be students as well. I can hear a torrent of drunken karaoke approaching UniVillage already. Never fear, though, as EMI, Universal, Warner and Sony BMG will also have space to promote their artists.

Club listings is apparently not about the local night scene, but about university clubs - you know like the rowing club and the bongo playing club. If the pub isn't a good enough place to interact (or you want to talk to someone outside your own uni town) then that's the place to do it.

Apart from the already well-established networking sites, the US-based Facebook is expanding its service to cover UK universities, but a distinctly British flavour from UniVillage might be welcomed.

I'm not sure what happens when you graduate - maybe you get kicked out to MySpace or Bebo? Students who sign up even get 25 free music downloads. Keep going with the free stuff and you won't go far wrong.

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