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AOL signs on to OpenSocial developer standard

AOL will officially support OpenSocial, the developer standard created by Google for social-networking applications. The announcement was hinted at by Google Director of Engineering David Glazer in a speech at the Google I/O conference Wednesday.

The online service-turned-media brand will join pretty much every big player in online media that isn't Facebook: MySpace and Yahoo, for example, were major partners when Google spun OpenSocial off into its own nonprofit organization.

It's not a surprise: Bebo, the social network acquired by AOL earlier this year, already supports OpenSocial, and is being tightly integrated into other AOL communication properties … Read more

Bebo president: We're not just for kids anymore

Bebo's core demographic might be teens and young adults in the U.K., but President Joanna Shields said that now that the social network's acquisition by AOL is complete, it's time to start expanding. Now that she's in charge of AOL's "People Networks" division, which encompasses Bebo as well as the AIM and ICQ instant-messaging services, her goal is to expand the service's reach and bring it up to par with bigger rivals like Facebook and News Corp.'s MySpace.

"If you look at Bebo (a year ago) it was much … Read more

AOL closes Bebo deal

AOL has closed its acquisition of Bebo, which it plans to fold into a new People Networks business unit.

The new unit will include Bebo, AIM, ICQ, and AOL's other community platforms, with a reach of about 80 million users worldwide, the company said Monday. Joanna Shields, CEO of Bebo, will serve as executive vice president of AOL and president of People Networks.

AOL in March announced the $850 million acquisition of Bebo, designed to boost the company's international presence. The youth-oriented social network is popular in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and New Zealand.

The new unit will … Read more

Few answers, debates at a very civil Web 2.0 panel

SAN FRANCISCO--Inside Facebook blogger Justin Smith had quite an opportunity on his hands. He was moderating a panel called "Comparing Social Platforms," featuring five representatives of some of the biggest players on the social Web: Dave Morin of Facebook, Allen Hurff of MySpace, Jessica Alter of Bebo, Patrick Chanezon of Google, and David Recordon of Six Apart. Smith had the chance to be a digital devil's advocate and get a lively debate going.

Why won't Facebook sign on to the OpenSocial standard that Google kick-started? Why hasn't MySpace's developer platform caught on as … Read more

At Glasshouse event, Bebo's Michael Birch avoids AOL talk

SAN FRANCISCO--It's kind of cheating to showcase the dotcom scene by hosting an event featuring Bebo co-founder Michael Birch and Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster. An outsider, observing Buckmaster's interview of Birch on Monday night as part of the Glasshouse salon series on entrepreneurialism, would get the idea that Web 2.0's scions must all be tall, stylish, and exceptionally good-looking.

That outsider would also get the idea that Silicon Valley had the comic timing of Juno, as it was, for the most part, a witty and borderline tongue-and-cheek interview. Bebo's success, Birch said, was "was … Read more

Webware 100 winner: Bebo

Bebo is a not just another MySpace, it's a one of the fastest growing and largest social networking Web sites on the Internet. Users can create their own profiles, and in typical social networking style, list favorite bands, pictures, and activities to share with friends on the service. Like competitor MySpace, Bebo is music-centric, and provides bands with ways to share their music using band profile pages.

What may be more interesting than the service itself is its history. Bebo was the top Google search query for all of 2006, according to the search engine's yearly zeitgeist. It'… Read more

'Lonelygirl15' creators launch production company, pull in venture funding

Remember the Web series Lonelygirl15? Protagonist "Bree" might have gotten killed off, but the team that created her wants to go places.

On Thursday, Lonelygirl15 brains Miles Beckett and Greg Goodfried--who also created a British spin-off called KateModern--announced the launch of their new "social entertainment" production company, Eqal. Previously, their company's name had been a bit more of a mouthful: LG15 Studios/Telegraph Ave. Productions.

Along with its debut, Eqal has announced $5 million in Series A venture funding in a round led by Spark Capital, with contributions from notable investors, including Silicon Valley veteran … Read more

AOL, Google, and News Corp. get into the Yahoo sweepstakes

I never thought that Microsoft's unsolicited bid for Yahoo could get so interesting. It's taking on Shakespearian dimensions, with various factions lobbying, forming alliances, and establishing dowries for Yahoo's favor. In addition, News Corp. may be lending aid to Microsoft in its quest to acquire Yahoo.

Over the weekend, Steve Ballmer gave Jerry Yang three weeks to capitulate, or Microsoft would take its case directly to Yahoo shareholders. Today, 69 days into the negotiations and posturing, with Microsoft seemingly in the driver's seat, prognosticators are scratching their heads.

Yahoo and AOL are reportedly in deep talks … Read more

Brightcove inks distribution deal with Bebo, other social networks

Brightcove, the Internet-video syndication and services company, announced on Monday that video content from its customers will appear on social-networking sites: Bebo, Meebo, RockYou, Slide and Veoh.

Brightcove helps media companies display their video over the Internet and offers varying services for managing video including publishing, distribution and advertising.

CEO Jeremy Allaire has amassed a customer list that reads like a who's who of media conglomerates, such as CBS, HBO, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and 20th Century Fox.

The new deal means that Brightcove customers will have access to the combined 300 million monthly visitors … Read more