Slide on Bebo

UK-based social network Bebo has announced it too will open its back-end to programmers.

But the plot thickens. Bebo is partnering with Facebook so its apps are 100 percent compatible with both social networks.

Bebo members will be able to interact and play games with Facebook users, reports the Financial Times.

Called the Open Application Platform, Bebo's open standard will be fully compatible with both Facebook and ultimately, Google's OpenSocial.

For now, it is focusing its attention on Facebook.

Nonetheless, the news is a blow to Google's OpenSocial initiative. Bebo was one of OpenSocial's 75 partners upon launch, and Google made a point of excluding Facebook from partnership.

Wary of launching yet another platform into the fray, Bebo apparently strives to be 100 percent compatible with all standards.

Yesterday, Facebook wrote in a blog post that it would license its technology platform to other social networks as a model, according to Reuters.

The third largest social network in the States, Bebo's 40 programming partners include iLike, Slide, NBC Universal, and advertisers such as The Gap. Once upon a time, it was dubbed a "poor man's MySpace."