News Corp. has sold beleaguered social network Myspace Inc. to an Irvine advertising network Specific Media Inc. for $35 million, it was announced Wednesday.

News Corp. will retain a minority stake in the Beverly Hills company.

The sale comes after months of speculation over who would acquire the ailing website.

New Corp. acquired Myspace in 2005 at the height of its popularity for $580 million. The company had hoped to offload the site before its fiscal year ends Thursday.

Specific Media brokers ad space on websites by targeting those ads to certain demographics. The sale will give it access to data about Myspace’s users for future ad targeting.

News Corp. shares were up 25 cents, or more than 1 percent, to $17.42 in midday trading on the Nasdaq.