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MySpace, Flock and Vidoop to Develop OpenID Identity for browser

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MySpace, Flock and Vidoop have developed OpenID for Flock, an implementation of the broader Identity in Browser (IDIB) open source project. OpenID for Flock offers the most comprehensive discovery and management capabilities for OpenID currently available. Internet users can now not only store their existing identity credentials within their browser, but also reap the benefits of better discovery when OpenIDs are made available by the sites they are visiting. OpenID for Flock is now available to all Flock 2.0 users as an alpha extension available for download.

With OpenID for Flock, the process of discovering, configuring and using OpenIDs that allow the user to log onto website accounts and manage their identity is streamlined. Once a relationship is established between OpenIDs and the sites that can rely on them for authentication, an easy, seamless experience is created for users that frequently travel to multiple destinations across the Internet.

MySpace, Flock and Vidoop jointly developed OpenID for Flock because the browser is the common application used by everyone to make the connection between both OpenID providers and sites that support login using the OpenID standard. Vidoop was the catalyst behind the original Identity In Browser (IDIB) project. The collaboration started in October 2008 when Vidoop Labs produced a fledgling prototype of IDIB, shared the code with the community, and blogged about the need for online identity to be solved at the browser level. MySpace became involved because of their commitment to OpenID via the company’s Data Availability Platform and Flock contributed their browser expertise based on their commitment to OpenID and furthering usability.

Originally posted on December 2, 2008 @ 11:03 pm

Trulia.com and Placecast partner to increase relevance of ads

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As advertisers and publishers seek ways to improve performance to compensate for shrinking budgets, new technologies like location-based advertising provide a means of improving relevance and response rates. Real estate site Trulia.com, and media company 1020 Placecast, have announced their partnership, using location information to target specific audiences for advertisers and deliver more relevant messages to them on Trulia.com.

Placecast adds a new dimension to audience targeting by using location information as the key to relevance. In Trulia’s case, the starting points are the real estate locations in which users express interest. Placecast’s proprietary targeting algorithms correlate these with dozens of other demographic, psychographic and geographic data points.

For publishers in categories such as travel, events, tickets, real estate, weather, classifieds and career search, Placecast uses the location information already present on these sites to target audiences and customize messaging. Improved performance results in a dramatic increase in the value of ad inventory for advertisers, transforming remnant ad space into premium CPM real estate for publishers.

One of the first advertisers to take advantage of this approach with Placecast and Trulia is Avis-Budget. Approximately halfway through a three-month campaign, Avis has seen its ads on Trulia perform strongly relative to other publishers. The Avis-Budget campaign is just the first of many in the expanded partnership between Trulia and Placecast.

Originally posted on November 19, 2008 @ 4:40 pm

NBA team launches social network with KickApps

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KickApps announced that the New Orleans Hornets have launched a social network for fans of the team powered by KickApps. The website is a destination for the supporters to gather online with other fans to share their passion for the Hornets and NBA basketball, create, share and discover fan submitted photos, videos and blogs, and interact exclusively with official club content.

Using social media, the Hornets capitalize on an opportunity to increase their connection with fans by extending the Hornets experience beyond the basketball court. The new website features its own social network with video and photo sharing functionality, forums, and the ability for members to take video and photos from the site to other social networks, blogs and websites using Hornets branded video and photo widgets.

To tip-off participation and activity on the site, the Hornets are holding a competition for fans to name the social network. Fans simply join the network and leave a comment with their proposed name and why they chose it. Additionally, the team has uploaded behind the scenes videos of the Honeybee cheerleaders and press conferences, with additional unique programming planned.

The New Orleans Hornets joins the Phoenix Suns’ Emmy Award winning PlanetOrange.net, New York Knicks, Phoenix Mercury, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, New York Rangers and Arena Football League, as teams that have embraced the KickApps Platform.

Originally posted on November 19, 2008 @ 7:14 am

Userplane plug-ins now available to developers for CMS platforms

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Userplane, the application provider for online communities, has released its plug-in applications for developers looking for community features for online communities.

Plug-ins for Userplane Webmessenger, Webchat and Webrecorder applications are now available for VBulletin, WordPress, Drupal, Mambo, Joomla and phpFoX. Developers can easily and quickly integrate Userplane plug-in applications into the social networking communities and websites they create with these platforms.

Originally posted on June 8, 2008 @ 7:08 pm

Automattic makes a move to social networking with BuddyPress acquisition

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wordpress-logo.gifAutomatic, the parent company of popular blogging platform WordPress, has acquired WP plug-in series BuddyPress to mark its ambitious move to social networking and perhaps challenge dominance players like MySpace and Facebook.

BuddyPress is a suite of plugins that will completely transform WordPress MU into a fully functional social network platform. Thanks to its $29.5 million funding raised in January 2008, it has gained some flexibility to explore different areas to sustain its continued growth. WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg explains the rationale for this acquisition:

It’s clear that the future is social. Connections are key. WordPress MU is a platform which has shown itself to be able to operate at Internet-scale and with BuddyPress we can make it friendlier. Someday, perhaps, the world will have a truly Free and Open Source alternative to the walled gardens and open-only-in-API platforms that currently dominate our social landscape.

This is an opportune time to partake in the social networking market for niche sites are expected to boom in the years to come.

via ReadWriteWeb

Originally posted on March 5, 2008 @ 12:00 pm