We had previously reported about the Opensocial Initiative and that MySpace would like to open up an API for outside developers to develop applications for MySpace, similar to the applications of Facebook. Well, they are online now and some applications are already available. MySpace also provides the opportunity to create social shopping widgets! Check out the MySpace application center here.
We have previously already written about APIs in our Mashup Article and the Opensocial Project but this one is of particular interest for media and content websites. Google has just published that it has set up a YouTube API along with developer docs on how to adapt and use the API. Now developers can customise and develop their own YouTube which many developers and bloggers have been waiting for I think! These are the features as shown on the page of the YouTube APIs and Tools:
(Source: Google)
A while ago we wrote an article about the API project called OpenSocial, which can be eventually plugged into many portals and systems. When Google, MySpace and consorts launch an initiative such as OpenSocial, then it means serious business.
What happens when the giant Microsoft opens up their ports for outside developers? You should read this article “Microsoft to Share More Technical Secrets” published by NYTimes. This inevitably implies some sort of revolution!
We have previously written about API and it’s one of the keywords of development in the last few months. When popular API are provided for the third-party innovators, there is a huge demand, as we can see with GoogleMaps and the over 4000 applications on Facebook itself.
With the growing availability of API it became more difficult to understand them all and that is why Google decided to simplify the development for websites and developers by creating one development platform called: OpenSocial.
This is how Google explains it on their website: “The ultimate goal is for any social website to be able to implement the APIs and host 3rd party social applications. Because it is based on the famous standard of HTML and Javascript it is easy to be learnt and quick to be applied. “
The following websites implementing the OpenSocial Standard are some websites which imply to revolutionize the development industry inevitably:
MySpace, Friendster, hi5, Hyves, imeem, LinkedIn, Ning, Oracle, orkut, Plaxo, Salesforce.com, Six Apart, Tianji, Viadeo, und XING to name just a few of all participants.
If Facebook does not join this initiative we are bound to see an interesting competition.
