Google has introduced an open set ofapplication
programming interfaces(APIs) for thesocial networkingsector that could
challenge the dominance ofFacebook, which is built on
proprietary APIs.
Opensocial, a set of APIs that lets third-party developers build
applications with minimal modification, has galvanised support from
social networking websites such as
Bebo,
LinkedIn and
Friendster.
Business sites Salesforce.com and Oracle.com have also agreed to
adopt the APIs. Google's own Orkut social networking site and
customisable home page, iGoogle, are naturally expected to use
Opensocial.
Third-party applications will provide a boost to the social
networking sector, said David Bradshaw, principal analyst at Ovum.
"Users enjoy more functionality, while website owners get more
visitors, meaning more advertising revenue," he said.
Application owners can gain revenues in several ways, said
Bradshaw, primarily through ads placed in their application.
Facebook pioneered this use of third-party applications on its
site, and analysts judged this to be an astute move and an instant
success. But the site's insistence on proprietary APIs could prove
costly in the long term, said Bradshaw.
Where Facebook asks application builders to jump through
proprietary hoops, they might prefer the open APIs associated with
Opensocial. "Applications on Facebook will be a lot harder to
deploy on other sites and vice-versa, whereas Opensocial widgets
should be relatively easy to deploy to between sites," Bradshaw
said.
"Opensocial's appeal is straightforward: build for one
Opensocial-compliant website and you can deploy in lots of other
places too."
The significance, Bradshaw said, is that we are now seeing the
first clear challenge to Facebook's appeal. "I think Opensocial has
a very good chance [of diverting web traffic]. Facebook may be one
of the hottest properties on the web, but it is by no means the
only popular social networking website, nor is its continued 'hot'
status guaranteed."