Snocap Inc., which developed technology for buying music downloads on MySpace.com, said Friday it has cut its work force by nearly half so it can focus on a strategy to sell the company.The cuts pared down the San Francisco-based company's staff from 57 employees to 26. "We have determined that the natural, best course for the company is to be part of a larger entity," Snocap CEO Rusty Rueff said in a statement. "This week, to pursue that strategy effectively, we made the painful decision to resize our team."

The firm has already drawn interest from several companies, Rueff said.

The company's remaining staff will focus on Snocap's core products, including its MyStores business, which lets MySpace users sell downloads of original music directly through their MySpace Web pages, and its ad-supported music streaming application on the Web site imeem.

Shawn Fanning, who created the Napster online file-sharing service as a college student, founded Snocap in 2002.

He is a member of the company's board of directors but has not been active in the company in recent years.

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On the Net:

Snocap Inc.: http://www.snocap.com