LOS ANGELES — News Corp. is aiming to sell struggling social network site MySpace this week after three years of massive losses, according to a person familiar with the matter. The move will likely result in the layoff of more than half of the site’s remaining 500 workers.

At least three bidders are still in the running – online advertising network Specific Media, private equity fund Golden Gate Capital and Austin Ventures, an investment fund that is working with MySpace co-founder Chris DeWolfe. The company hasn’t chosen a front-runner yet, according to the person who was not authorized to comment publicly.

News Corp. is looking to cut a deal today or Thursday in order to have it completed in its fiscal year, which ends Thursday.

Earlier, the News Corp.-owned website All Things D reported that MySpace was on the verge of being sold for $20 million to $30 million. The unamed source said the deal price will likely be higher and include a combination of cash and stock.

Even so, any sale around that price would mark a stunning reversal from 2005, when News Corp. bought the promising startup for $580 million when social networking was in its infancy.

Since then, rival site Facebook has turned into the dominant social media platform with more than half a billion users. A recent investment by private fund GSV Capital Corp. valued Facebook at $50 billion. LinkedIn Corp., a social network for professionals, recently went public and now has a market capitalization of about $8 billion.

The low estimate for MySpace suggests there may only be residual value in its brand, said Debra Aho Williamson, principal analyst with research firm eMarketer.

“It shows that this is just something that News Corp. wants to get off of its books at any price it can get,” she said.