Facebook, Google Launch Data Portability Programs to All
Sites like Facebook and MySpace need to keep competitive criteria in mind, so that by embracing data portability they don't risk losing their members, he said.
"Openness is great, but if it means I'm somehow disintermediated in some way and someone takes my users, then that's not as appealing," Sterling said.
The big social sites also need to be careful about protecting the privacy and security of their members as they extend their data portability implementations. This can be tricky and complicated to accomplish, since data portability by definition involves sharing and exposing member data with other Web sites, Sterling said.
At this early stage, the parties that stand to benefit most are end-users and Web site owners, not necessarily Google, MySpace and Facebook, he said.
End-users will benefit from the convenience of being able to sign in to multiple Web sites with the log-in information of their favorite account. Web site publishers, such as those that already have signed on to Facebook Connect, will gain viral exposure to the massive audiences of the big social networks.
For Facebook, Google and MySpace, the benefits are more intangible at this point, centered more on extending their brands and reach beyond the frontiers of their own Web sites, Sterling said.
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