Despite the abundance of tweet buttons from various companies across the blogosphere, Twitter is possibly launching an official button this week, which could spell the end for companies like TweetMeme (a service many blog platforms use) in the not so distant future.
Twitter is launching an official Tweet Button for sharing articles on websites and counting how many times a URL has been shared, according to documents Mashable has obtained. The Tweet Button could launch as soon as this Thursday.
We’re still diving into the details, but from what we can tell, the Tweet Button is designed to be the most comprehensive counter of retweets and shares across Twitter’s network. It is a single line of code that can be added to any website. There are three versions of the button (110×20, 55×20, 55×63) with five different settings for customization. (Mashable)
Launching a twitter button makes sense, as it would help Twitter effectively compete against rival social networks like Facebook, (who has an official like button) as well as solidify their defenses against the oft rumored Google Me.
It will be interesting to see how third party companies adjust by adopting extra social networks like Facebook (something AddThis has previously done) or adopt extra features (i.e. displaying tweet avatars, analytics, etc.) to compete against Twitter.
Either way third party developers will probably not be thrilled with this news, as it would only heighten fears that Twitter is once again competing against developers in the twitterverse.
(Image via Mashable)
Update: Corrected article (Blog Herald uses Topsy, not Tweetmeme).
