Last month, Google announced, to great fanfare, that their free Google Friend Connect service was available to all webmasters, so any website could put the Google code on their website. This allows anyone with a Google account to join any website and enjoy its social media style features.
What’s It All About?
The idea is to create a universal account giving access to a multitude of websites. This means having just one username and password for all websites. The idea of the web working on a “one account” basis for users is still very much an emerging technology and it is no suprise Google leads the way.
Google Friend Connect is powered by OpenSocial, which Google and MySpace and a number of other social networks developed. OpenSocial is essentially a set of common APIs for building and distributing social applications and their data across many websites
Great! Surely All Websites Will Embrace This?
Er, not exactly. For a start, all webmasters must sign-up and use Google Friend Connect. Existing major services with an already massive user base might not want or need to do this.
Will This Mean Google Takes Over Social Media in 2009?
Google Friend Connect does make it possible in theory for Google to monopolise social media. Already people like Twitter have signed up. But there are two huge problems.
1) A major competitor, Facebook, launched its own version, Facebook Connect, within hours of Google’s and implemented it across sites like the Discovery Channel, the San Francisco Chronicle and Digg. The guys at Facebook are not about to welcome their rival’s service with open arms (let’s face it, the two companies hardly share a history of friendship!). And Facebook Connect means it could just as easily be Facebook who take over social media. However, the Facebook system isn’t as easy for webmasters to use, or as well exposed, so it still has some way to go. Already, Facebook has banned Google’s Friend Connect from its API program, citing nerves over privacy rather than a ‘corporate beef’ issue. (Yeah, right.)
2) So far, few webmasters have embraced Google Friend Connect. We installed it here on this gadget blog, in the sidebar for two days. Not only was it quite bulky, but it didn’t look great, and visitors with a Google account paid it hardly any attention. It had to go.
The Theory Is Awesome – The Reality Isn’t Great
The idea behind having one account on the web is awesome. But getting all websites to embrace this is another matter entirely. Facebook for one isn’t about to do that anytime soon, or take the threat from Google Connect on the chin.
So, in reality, the chance of this happening is very slim, and the chance of it happening in 2009 even slimmer! Even so, the gloves are off – and the battle looks set to be fascinating.
Add Your Comment Now!
@Reuben I agree this is only the start for Google Friend Connect. When we installed it on this website we didn’t like the widget and didn’t feel the benefits were worth the space the widget took up. But this whole “one account” idea is still emerging and has a very long way to go so we shall see
We have a google friend connect directoy where over 100 sites have registered to date, this is only the start for friend connect and we think this could be huge and bigger than facebook. We have over 150 members signed up in a little under 1 month and that has all been done with google friend connect.
Reuben.
GFC is good, but Facebook Connect is better. Who wouldn’t want to tap into the 120 million users. Enable them to bring their friends and get your website promoted back on Facebook through News Feeds? In spite of it’s proprietary nature and trickier implementation, if webmasters put in the work the rewards will be much greater than Google Friend Connect.
Ian Hendry
CEO, WeCanDo.BIZ
Facebook’s system is much more limited and less user friendly than the one released by Google. The most glaring difference between the 2 is the issue of expansiveness and compatibility. In particular, Facebook Connect is only compatible with a Facebook social networking account. If you do not have a Facebook account, then you cannot use Facebook Connect. With Google Friend Connect, however, there are no such limitations and restrictions. Specifically, virtually any social network can work with Google Friend Connect.
Brian
I did some research while back on Facebook Connect to possibly have it on this website. I used the TechCrunch website to see it fully in action. To be honest I hate how in their comments it has the commentors full name and profile picture. Personally I have no desire to have that on another website (OK I ones I own). I only want Facebook so I can connect with my “real” friends. Also the amount of users using it wasn’t that many, most just used the traditional method of leaving a comment – so the effort didn’t justify the benefits. Once again, we will have to see how it develops and pans out. But it’s not for me at the moment.
I have to disagree with you Brian. You say Facebook Connect is not user friendly, but the metaphor it uses is familar to all Facebook users from adding applications (now ‘boxes’) and is likely to be pretty common across all external sites too. Sure it is Facebook only, but who doesn’t know Facebook these days. And although you say Google Friend Connect will work with “virtually any social network” it actually doesn’t — as it stands it works on Orkut and Plaxo fully, with MySpace support only to post items back to that site.
At this time, Facebook Connect, although proprietary, leads.
Ian Hendry
CEO, WeCanDo.BIZ
I think once Facebook Connect becomes more easy to install and more Facebook users start using it then it will really get some momentum going, especially in the blogosphere, more-so than Google Friend Connect. If one of them pulls out way ahead of the other (in terms of usage) I think it could be pretty damaging for the loser so both are going to go for it all guns blazing I hope!
It is an interesting comparison between Facebook and GFC, Facebook has obviously been around a lot longer, but I really think that Google is has something else in the background still to come out, these are the initial widgets and more has to follow, and enhancement to the code. Also believe when they embed with adsense and video ads, which will drive revenue sharing between the website and google, then I think you will see a faster deployment and transition to GFC. If people think they can make money from this…
With the GFC system, I can see a universal login and the enabling of social features on the whole WWW once you’re “logged in.” This could be an online breakthrough if enough people adopt the technology
Brian S
CEO, FriendConnectDirectory