Apparently the invite-only OpenID meetup at Facebook took place tonight. The fact that it was held at Facebook points to a shift taking place in the OpenID world. What’s coming is obvious: somehow retrofit Facebook Connect into OpenID architecture. Repeat after me. Yes, we can.
Facebook Connect can become a OpenID middleman, serving attribute-enriched OpenID to consumer sites that selected Facebook as its OpenID supplier. OpenID middlemans solve two key OpenID usability issues as well as opening up the potential to solve some privacy issues.
The first usability issue the middleman solves is the need to type in OpenID URL by replacing the URL input box with a button saying Signin with OpenID or a branded version like Facebook Connect button.
The second usability issue is users forgetting which OpenID they’ve used at a OpenID consumer site. Site can save that in a cookie but that opens up privacy and taste issues, particularly since consumer sites will be less trusted than OpenID supplier services like Facebook and Google.
The middleman can also support anonymous personas for users to minimize privacy issues but, to do so, they’ll have to provide bridging service between the sites and the real identity to meet the needs of consumer sites.
Who will be the players? Facebook and Google, of course. Throw in MySpace, Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL as well. I reckon security, payment, and infrastructure companies to come in too, late of course. Now, they are all OpenID providers but, to act as middlemans, they’ll have to also act like OpenID consumers to either pass on third-party OpenID identity or return a proxy identity. IMHO, it’s a very small price to pay IMHO since only oddball users will choose to do so.
Yes, it’s going to be a party night and, when the dawn comes, small OpenID providers will just fade away like old soldiers, taking the name with it too and leaving behind only big name portals and social networks wrapped in brand names.
) based in LA, singing a popular song by K-POP group Wonder Girls:
Planet Size Brain 7:19 pm on April 6, 2009 Permalink
Yeah, she’s even visited Seoul to appear on a SBS’ talent show about a month ago. Understandably, her Youtube video has been a talk of the town for a while here.
You will need to take her stunt with a grain of salt though–there are far too many viral marketing memes out there. She might have been one of the carefully orchestrated memes to impress Wondergirls fan in Korea. Look at the professional-caliber microphone she is singing into.
Sorry if I sound like an overly suspicious type but it is just my guess.
Replica Sunglasses 9:42 pm on March 1, 2010 Permalink
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