Facebook Keeping Pace With Google's Open Platform Maneuvers

Not content to simply rely on its explosive growth curve (as MySpace did under NewsCorp prior to the shakeup), Facebook yesterday made three big announcements aimed at wooing more high-end and low-end developers:

•  Facebook Platform: A rich and well-thought out suite of developer-facing support code, information and services including a heretofore unprecedented 6-month developer roadmap and a major focus on simplicity (similar to Google's maneuvers).
  

• Open Graph: Part of Facebook platform, a vague announcement about a new API that will allow website builders everywhere to build Facebook-style pages, complete with many of the platform's bells and whistles.  A logical follow up to Google Friend Connect, this lines up with Mark Zuckerberg's January comments on the decentralization of the platform and follows Google's strategic open API lead, reinforcing that walled graden large scale social media is on its way out.
  

• Developer Access to User Email Addresses: A minor move with major impications.  This will allow Facebook app developers the ability to reach out to users directly, massively increasing the value proposition for certain apps, especially those hooked into big companies looking for more marketing value via FB.
  

The moves reinforce the trend of increasing openness of large-scale social platforms.  Google and Twitter have been trailblazing.  Now Facebook has made up serious ground. 

MySpace is refocused on music and, based on a possible deal with Facebook, seems to be moving in the right direction. 

Microsoft and Yahoo, though they're seriously focused on developers are working to grock the seriousness of the prosumer game and Mandate of Kevin. But rest assured, they'll be announcing similar changes shortly because there will be no other option.  This will require a shift in internal culture that may result in deeper level shakeups at these not quite fast-follower entities.

Viva los prosumer!