Microsoft announced today that it is joining DataPortability.org – a group that professes to create 
What’s interesting about this group is that earlier this month, Google and Facebook joined it. Prior to getting Google and Facebook on board the group really wasn’t going anywhere, says a post on the blog ReadWriteWeb.
“The group is working on a variety of projects to foster an era of Data Portability – where users can take their data from the websites they use to reuse elsewhere and where vendors can leverage safe cross-site data exchange for a whole new level of innovation. Good bye customer lock-in, hello to new privacy challenges. … The participation of representatives from Google and Facebook in this initiative could prove key in the continued development of what’s possible, instead of the early suffocation of what could have been.”
And so where Google goes, Microsoft shall follow. But, of course, keeping an eye on Google is not the reason Microsoft’s architect evangelist Robin Mestré gave for joining the group. He said:
“We believe the logical evolution of the Internet is to enable the removal of barriers to provide integrated, seamless experiences, but to do so in a manner that ensures that users retain full control over the security and privacy of their information.
… Through each Windows Live advancement we’re making technical investments to ensure users’ information is available to them in the places they want, even across the networks they use every day. … Microsoft feels strongly that getting the right balance for data portability, security and privacy is critical for the industry, and doing it well requires the participation of all the major web services.”
Still, since the group’s expected deliverables are pretty cloudy, it is entirely possible that the real reason these companies have joined is to appear to be working together to protect privacy while in reality, not doing much of anything. If actual progress is made, we’ll let you know.
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