Windows Live teams up with social networks for contact portability

Robert Scoble couldn't do it, but Windows Live can.

Microsoft's Web-app division announced Tuesday that it has partnered with five social networks--LinkedIn, Tagged, Hi5, Bebo, and yes, Facebook--on a new project to facilitate address book portability. The partner social networks have agreed to use the Windows Live Contacts API so that members can import Windows Live contacts to their respective sites, as part of the new data-portability strategy that Microsoft outlined at its Mix conference earlier this month.

In return, Microsoft has launched Invite2Messenger, a new service for users of those social networks so that they can invite the members of their friends lists to join Windows Live Messenger.

This replaces "scraping," a widely used process of diving into one account on a social network or e-mail client's database to export contacts to another. It's technically unauthorized, and occasionally social networks make a stink about it--as Facebook did when blogger Scoble tested out a script that exported his friends list to contact management service Plaxo and had his account temporarily banned--and Windows Live representatives have said that an authorized API makes the process more secure.

It's already accessible on Facebook and Bebo, which is in the process of being acquired by AOL, and will be worked into the other three sites within the next few months.

[dahowlett]

What does this mean for...

OpenID? I thought they were supposed to be in favor of that. <br />Doesn't this have the feel of another attempt at lock-in?

[kojacked]

It's all about the money...

While OpenID might be the "right" way to go it doesn't neccessarily give the social networks proprietors any more eyeballs -- which they want for advertising dollars. Making it easier to bring contacts (and more users) into the social network is like a salesman getting free sales leads.<br /><br />Keep in mind this isn't Microsoft forcing anything on anyone as much as many Microsoft haters would love to think so. The proprietors of these social networks are making the choice to support the API.

[AppleSuxLeo]

Full speed ahead at MSFT...

Under Ray Ozzie , MSFT is starting to do some great things. Netflix will soon be streaming movies through XBOX 360. And HULU added to the mix makes Apple an also-ran.Click link to buy on HULU and it takes one to Amazon unbox , which doesnt work on Mac...bwahahahaha !And that guy in the turtle-neck never mentions that lots of things "just don`t work" on a Mac.Why pay the bald guy when you can stream it for free in high quality on your PC on HULU ? Also...no need to pay bald guy for music , as it is cheaper , higher quality , and has no DRM on AmazonMP3.Amazon Kindle is another great product from Amazon. Jeff Bezos is a Jobs-Killer!