Have you noticed the explosion in little games and entertainment applications intended for use on social networks?

Facebook led the charge by publishing an API for developers to use, but Google followed up soon thereafter with an portable standard interface called “OpenSocial“. Most of the rest of the social networks are standardizing on OpenSocial. An OpenSocial application can work similarly on hi5, Myspace and Plaxo and several other social networks with only minor code changes.

OpenSocial provides developers with a Javascript API exposing several interesting services:

1. View the contents of a users Profile.
2. Access to a users social graph (Friends List)
3. Management of application specific persistent data.
4. The ability to read and write “Activity” streams (a log of actions which a user has taken).

Each OpenSocial provider hosts a container for these services, where they can customize which services are available and what permissions need to be validated for access.

By allowing external developers access to this API, the social networks have leveraged the talents of many independent developers, letting them extend their services “stickyness” organically and at very little cost to themselves.

So let me ask, what is the difference between a social networking application and a persistent world? Or even an MMO? Aren’t we just another type of social network, with perhaps some Role Playing stuff on top?

Can we learn from the way that social networks are extending themselves? Should we consider supporting API’s like OpenSocial, and think about extending our communities in a similar way?

Even if we can’t do this “in world”, isn’t there value in exporting this type of information from our game worlds out to the web? Once our communities are visible on the web, we also can support OpenSocial applications.

What are your thoughts?

Find out more about the OpenSocial API.