MySpace this afternoon confirmed rumors by making clear its intention to buy iLike. The deal, unofficially thought to be worth about $20 million, will give MySpace's social network control over the music service, which today lets users play and share song recommendations on sites like Facebook and also has its own fledgling downloadable music store. Existing staff at iLike should remain in the project and at their current Seattle location.

The deal has been explained by MySpace chief Owen Van Natta as "bigger" than just the obvious music link but hasn't received specific details on what this involves. Van Natta has acknowledged that the recommendation engine may play a part in other aspects of MySpace. No plans are in place to tie the existing MySpace Music catalog into iLike, however, and other sites are likely to keep their iLike support.

Acquiring iLike gives MySpace an advantage over Facebook, which hasn't had a music service of its own to rival MySpace Music and has depended mostly on unofficial help from iLike. Bebo and other networks have also had a similar dependence. The move nonetheless comes as rumors persist of Facebook integration with iTunes that would share song details, including links to the iTunes Store.