I propose that rather than the simple idea with started with (tagging any image anywhere as long as you use the etags javascript library/plugin) we instead separate this into two parts. The decentralised data store (called… etags) which could act as the tag storage solution for any number of services (social networks, blogs, etc.), and the cross-domain image tagging javascript (called… taggr? ;)… We can discuss the name…) which uses etags as it’s data store.
This would be the first commercial offering on top of the open-source etags and would help to build up the database of tags and hopefully tempt other services to use etags. These other services might include existing or new social networks, or even competitors to our cross-domain service. As long as they all use etags then it is easy for users to switch services or to communicate tags with users of different services.
There would be no requirement that people who use etags have to allow people to tag cross service. Although this would be nice I can’t see existing social networks liking that idea. At least if they store the data in etags then people on other services will be able to see the tags on their own services.
By separating it into two parts, it gives the project both an ethical (freedom of tagging data, open source, etc.) and a commercial (ad-supported service?) domain. This would not require any extra research beyond what we’re doing now as this is still the same idea it’s just a little more modular.
So… opinions?