Let Web 3.0 commence.

Last Thursday, Google launched its much-anticipated OpenSocial, a programming standard for Social Networks, initially including sites such as Ning.com, LinkedIn, and Orkut (Google’s new Social Network site). You can see the homepage here. This new standard is a major leap forward for web development because it allows sites that were once autonomous to share the same API (Application Programming Interface). In de-geekified terms, sites that use Google’s new technology will share a common language that can be used to implement features and advances across websites and networks that share the OpenSocial standard. This is a smart marketing move on Google’s part to begin to muscle in on the social networking arena.

But What Does it All Mean, Basil?
The biggest advantage is that programmers will now be able to work their magic using a single standard, a standard that hasn’t existed until now. What OpenSocial offers will speed innovation and bring more engaging features to more places across the web. Ultimately, end users and businesses will see the effects of all of this techno mumbo jumbo: they’ll get expanded access to more interesting, engaging features that will be better integrated with their everyday lives.

It’s the next logical step in the evolution of Social Networking, or the internet for that matter: a step that could even expanding beyond the traditional “social” sense, morphing into viable business applications. The literal functionality as a result of OpenSocial is hard to predict, but will continue to evolve in the near future. Where this technology takes us will largely be dependent on the ingenuity of the developers who implement it. But its potential is clear, and with a little maturity, OpenSocial could be the jumping-off point for a new phase in web development.