Startpages began their existence as simple tools to aggregate RSS feeds via a Web-based interface. When Netvibes was introduced in the summer of 2005, it had a simple RSS reading, Web notes, and a weather module. Since then, startpages have quickly evolved into robust management interfaces for Web Services other than RSS. Some of the services that they manage include mapping, calendaring, and games.

The industry has since converged on the term "widget" to describe the graphical user interface components that encapsulate these services and deliver value to users. The term widget is derived from the terms "window" and "gadget." Although startpages have evolved fantastically over the past two years, they are still regarded by most as a tool for personal content aggregation. In other words, my widgets are for me. If I want to share, or publish, information with the world at large, then I will use my favorite social networking platform, or blog. Not for long...

While widgets play a foundational role in the world of startpages, widgets - at least the way they are thought of on MySpace - were not even a consideration when MySpace exploded on the scene. MySpace was designed to be a community publication platform providing the tools to create and share content across a network. It just so happened that some smart folks like YouTube, RockYou, and Project Playlist quickly realized that users wanted to share more than just text. They wanted to share videos, slideshows, games, and other cool applications. What tool did these Web 2.0 mavens empower users with? Widgets. Why? Widgets are an effective deployment vehicle to deliver services to audiences across multiple networks.

Initially, widget content was - for lack of a better word - simple. Users simply cut and paste code snippets to personalize their profiles with glitter text, video clips, and so on. But now that Pandora's Box has been opened, a slew of smart folks are lining up to usher in the next generation of personalized Web experiences. These aren't just kids hacking in their basements. Major brands such as Paramount, DreamWorks, the NBA, NFL, and even publishers like Hearst are partnering with widget platforms like Clearspring to innovate in this space. MySpace kiddies now have an infinite palette with which to paint their virtual canvases. Users of other publication platforms such as blogs are following suit. And the owners of these platforms are making it easier to integrate widgets into the publishing experience.

Oh yeah, and it's working. In November 2007 alone, 81% of all Web surfers saw a widget on the Web, according to comScore; that's 148 million people - to put that in perspective that's about half of the U.S. population. Widgets represent a foundational shift in the Web and are a fantastic vehicle to deploy services via an SaaS model and distributed branded messaging to audiences across the Web.

As with any major paradigm shift, there are questions. How do you monetize widgets? How do you define and measure the success of a widget? Different aggregation tools and sites use varying standards and guidelines for implementing widgets, which might require developers to design widgets for each aggregation platform. How do you address this? How will standardization efforts like OpenSocial impact the landscape in the coming years?

Although the sands are rapidly shifting, there are companies that offer the promise of a write once, run anywhere widget platform, where you design a widget once and enable one-click viral distribution. Some of these companies also offer advanced analytics services that can track widget distribution granularly, showing how a widget has proliferated from site to site.

The Web is foundationally shifting from a publication mechanism into a platform for services. Social Aggregation platforms like blogs, startpages, and social networks enable users to aggregate services and content quickly. By leveraging lightweight SOA paradigms and RIA programming tools to deploy distributed applications such as widgets, developers have an opportunity to distribute content and services more effectively to massive audiences and realize the promise of a personalized Web.