Best Buy has released Remix at the Web 2.0 Expo in New York City, allowing anyone to create a mashup with Best Buy online catalog content. An application programming interface (API) — documented though light on code or examples — allows queries into Best Buy’s online catalog and results to be returned from those queries.
As they say on their site, “Remix is an API that gives you access to BestBuy.com’s product catalog data. What you do with it is up to you.”
Really? I’d assume that some sort of terms of service would be forthcoming.
Joshua Michele Ross over at O’Reilly Radar (O’Reilly is the brain trust behind the Expo), has this excellent post about the import of Best Buy doing this:
“Best Buy is thinking much more strategically about the value of the Internet by allowing anyone to reinvent their entire online store. With “access to all the data that feeds Bestbuy.com” imagine the potential of creating your own, curated site on top of Best Buy’s catalog and supply chain. Imagine top Blue Shirts running their own online stores with select merchandise that they stand behind or imagine a thousand home-theater geeks and “go-to-guys” (and girls) extending their expertise and word-of-mouth via their own online stores.”
I’ll throw in one more: imagine you run a price comparison site that allows an online shopper to instantly compare pricing to another (though this can be done with screen scraping, but this API makes it much easier).
I must say that with BlueShirtNation, their prediction markets, what we experienced over at the Social Media Breakfast (specifically with this video), I grow more impressed by the week with the calculated risk, openness and forward-thinking this retailer is pursuing. Kudos Best Buy.
September 23rd, 2008 at 6:31 pm
I remember when our small team showed up to take BBY online (1999-2000), in the first meeting with Brad Anderson he said they were late getting online but now that they had made the decision, they wanted to kick everyone else’s ass. I liked that attitude!
Even though one has been able to do similar things with Amazon, they are the exception, not the rule. Good to see BBY moving forward.
September 24th, 2008 at 1:26 am
Wow, for small eCommerce product builders like us – this will be a whole new scale on which we can test our software. Thank you, BestBuy!
September 24th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
It’s going to be interesting to see what people come up with. It’s a bit beyond my imagination, but that’s part of the fun.
Clearly, if someone creates an online application that drives traffic to BBY products, they’ll benefit.
September 24th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
Thanks, Steve. I’m excited about what we’re getting away with. We owe a tremendous debt to Gary & Steve (the Blue Shirt Nation guys) for demonstrating to the enterprise that we can take risks online.
Regarding TOS — it’s coming. The one we have in mind now is based on the Giftag TOS. I want as few restrictions as we can possibly put in place. After all, if the idea is to foster innovation, putting a lot of barriers in place is a stupid idea.
- Kevin
September 24th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Kevin,
Sheesh…my colleague, Garrick Van Buren, pings me today about YAI (yet another innovation) with the Best Buy Community launch.
I may have to rename this site, “MinnoBestBuy” (though that sounds like some place to buy fish bait cheaply).
September 25th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
I’d say I was sorry, but I’d be lying. It’s an exciting time to be working at Best Buy, with Giftag, Remix, the forums… we don’t feel like a big dumb big-box retailer.