Is Linkedin in play? 

Most of the recent flurry of reporting about Facebook has focused on the impact that its wildly successful foray into the world of adult membership is having on MySpace but there are signs that it is also having an effect on LinkedIn, the original social network for business users. 

The signs are there, beginning with a series of executive changes being announced this week.  Yesterday, the company named Steve Sordello, formerly of Tivo, as its new CFO.  Tomorrow, it will announce that Patrick Crane, formerly of the Yahoo! Inc. Network Division where he headed up several key products, including the launch of Yahoo! Answers, is its new Vice President of Marketing.  Crane’s mandate is to help head up LinkedIn’s first general marketing push with initiatives designed to build the  community beyond its current eleven-million users.  (Memo to PR people:  if you want me to keep a secret, write “embargoed until …”) on the release.

More significantly, some Wall Street types I know and generally trust tell me that there are discussions going on between LinkedIn and one of the oldest and most respected family-run business publishers.  (Okay, I’ll make it easy for you, McGraw-Hill.)  

I think it would be a great move for both parties.