Web analytics, web metrics, and how to use them to track and improve conversions

14h55 - 15h40   
Bringing social to software: Radical change is coming. Are we ready ?
Marc Canter - Broadband Mechanics (moderator)
Tariq Krim - Netvibes
Hans Peter Brondmo - Plum
Patrick Chanezon - Google
Susan Kish - European Energy Forum  

Patrick – OpenSocial – Google – changes the playing field though Social Networks – open standard, when and how are we having social applications – end of January when the spec is finished.  Google will provide testing labs – talks about containers.

Threading model, Cross Network Portability - Open Social does that BUT Google does not deal with the open probability model where people move from one social network to another – Patrick does not feel Google is putting out a Standard for this at this time.

Google will enable certain applications in the future with OpenSocial and wants application developers to get acquainted now instead of waiting for their standard to be locked down (and what’s coming later is more like “enhancements” such as Security, but won’t change the basic programming model).

Mark – Broadband Mechanics – thinks that OpenSocial is just open widgets while Patrick disagrees.  Also brings up Facebook as an example of creating content that only works in Facebook.

The reason why data held in one social network will end up being shared by a social network that does not want to share it …because if they don’t, someone else will.

            Broadband Mechanics enables some of the mergers.

            Mark wonders about Access Control and if all vendors will respect it.

Terik – Netvibes, believes the future of the web is the widgetization of it.  Most Social Networks say they’re open but don’t really want to be because they’re not sure how to monetize it; cites Facebook Beacon, the idea failed because they did not sell the idea enough beforehand (it’s political and educational).  Universal Widget API.  

     No one has figured out Monetization yet.

Hans – Plum, sites Lawrence Lessing – Plum embeds entire social application on your site (encapsulate).  Doesn’t think OpenSocial is Open or Social, yet, because its not available till next January and it’s making it harder for social networks to monetize.  However, Hans feel that OpenSocial does help the messaging between Social Networks.

Hans sees the real is “ownership” of your own profile and how it appears – personal information is a very valuable asset but we have no model on how to manage it online.

Susan Kish – Social Networks attempts to solve a problem – but there are barriers to making it happen – most senior management doesn’t really embrace it.

Robert Scoble asked a question about when companies will stop creating platforms that are not open – and Venture Capitalists will stop funding them.  Also, Robert says he’s on several networks and uses different names for him on each – how will OpenSocial reconciled all the names he has on his different networks be tracked and reconciled?

Open ID – takes care of the portability issues (had one of the authors of the standard speak).