Last week Google introduced the Google Social Graph API, a new application programming interface to allow wed developers to make better use of relationship data for social networking sites.
The new API will have a number of practical applications, with one possibility being the integration of a button to allow users to easily add friends.
Thomas Claburn at Information Week writes:
“If Google’s vision proves appealing and social data loses its linkage to a specific social site, Facebook and MySpace may find their ability to retain users substantially diminished. Without the added value of social graph exclusivity, Facebook and MySpace become merely providers of Web hosting for the HTML averse. It’s doubtful Facebook could sustain a valuation of $15 billion were it pitched as ‘Geocities, but with widgets.’ “
With the ever expanding social networking scene, it becomes more and more difficult to decide which websites to join, and where your time should be invested. The new API only has access to public information, but will allow developers to create services which will utilize these public connections to make information more easily accessible and useful.