This week’s poll asks: will Facebook join Google’s OpenSocial? The results so far:
Yes 45%
No 46%
Open What? 9%
From the comments on our original post, the ‘Yes’ camp thinks the benefits include Facebook getting more widgets and developers. Other comments: Timoth?©e said that “Web 2.0 needs normalisation”. MikeB asked: “how long can it [Facebook] continue to be a walled garden?”. Kiran thinks that “it would be a mistake in long run if they [FB] don’t conform to the standards.”
In the ‘No’ camp, Dennis Howlett pointed out that it’s a moot point “until identity management and interoperability are clarified […]”. Jon Burg said “there’s no reason for Facebook to open the exit doors.” Sean Tierney commented that Facebook will “join when it’s in their best interest to do so and right now it doesn’t make sense.” Donv69 said that “Facebook is still too young to start making such moves. Google could easily cripple them using OpenSocial.”
So, some excellent pros and cons mentioned in the comments. Also see Marshall Kirkpatrick’s analysis of OpenSocial and Josh Catone’s thoughts on why Facebook doesn’t need OpenSocial.
But let’s see if we can break the deadlock. We’ve all had over a week now to analyze OpenSocial and see how Facebook responded to the pressure (it unveiled a new ad network). So tell us what you think in the poll below: