Ning Apps Launch Across 1.5 Million Ning Networks
September 10th, 2009 | Published in Google OpenSocial
Today we released Ning Apps, or third-party applications based on OpenSocial 0.8, that serve as new, rich features for our 1.5 million+ Ning Networks and 33 million users.
Thanks to OpenSocial and more than 90 Ning App developers, our Ning Network Creators now have an even greater choice over the features and applications they can add to Ning Networks to make them exactly right for a given topic, interest or passion.
If you don’t know about Ning, we’re the social platform for the world’s interests and passions online. Through the power of Ning Networks, we bring the context of topics, interests and passions to social networking. We’ve been at work on Ning Apps in a private beta for a few months now and our Network Creators love Ning Apps for three key reasons.
First, with a single click, a Ning Network Creator can now add Ning Apps to expand the functionality of their Ning Network and increase engagement by their members. Most social platforms rely exclusively on members adding applications to their profile pages, but when a Network Creator adds a Ning App, that Ning App is available to all of the members of that Ning Network in a flash. This means that with one action, a Network Creator can make their Ning App available to hundreds, thousands or even millions of people instantaneously. This is a different – and we think better – approach to application distribution.
Second, with the breadth of Ning Apps, the options on Ning Networks are infinite for Network Creators. Here are some examples of how Ning Networks can use Ning Apps to engage their unique audience in a relevant and effective way.
For Artist, Musician or Entertainment Ning Networks
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Sellit online store to sell merchandise
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Ticketmaster or LiveNation to sell event tickets
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Qik to stream mobile video or Ustream.tv to live video chat from a live event
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Social Giving by Pinc to support fundraising efforts
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Marketplace Classifieds to allow people to post and search local ads for more volunteers and resources
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BlogTalkRadio to host live radio shows
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PollDaddy to rapidly gauge members level of involvement
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Huddle to share workspaces and collateral
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Tungle.me to schedule meetings and mobilize members
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WordPress to display blog posts
For Sports Fan or Extreme Athlete Ning Networks
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NewsShare to share highlights and stories
- Emote to share real time reactions to games and players
You can see the Full Ning Apps Directory at about.ning.com/ningapps.
Third, Ning Apps are completely integrated into Ning Networks by design. Ning Apps support gadgets.skins, allowing them to automatically inherit the visual style of the Ning Network to which they're added. Additionally, each Ning App by default is designed to write to a member's Latest Activity feed, send messages on behalf of the member (via requestSendMessage) and drive distribution using a Ning Network’s default viral sharing options.
If you're a developer interested in more info, please check out our Ning Developer Network. If you're a Ning Network Creator, please visit the full Ning Apps Directory on your Ning Network to start adding Ning Apps today.