SharedBook.com is an on-demand Reverse Publishing platform that allows websites to monetize content: websites can allow their visitors to combine content from the site with personal and community data, as well as photos and stories–the options are endless. SharedBook will soon be opening up their API for everyone to use, which means a new opportunity for website owners to monetize their site’s content.

Let’s take, for example, SharedBook’s recent joint venture with Legacy.com. Legacy.com is the leading provider of online obituary solutions for the newspaper industry. Their solution allows users to combine an online obituariy with messages left for the family and relatives through an online guestbook–which is combined with photos and other content that results in an online book structure. The online book structure can be edited, reviewed, and added-to if necessary. A ‘private book’ can be made, and users can then invite others to collaborate on the book. Then the final book can be printed.

The SharedBook.com open API will enable web developers to build applications for sites that will integrate data into the SharedBook application. The open API allows for the dynamic definition of articles and book making spaces, uploading of photos and stories, as well as a ‘previewing’ capability. The open API framework is REST based and includes a secure authentication mechanism to prevent any possible fraud.

The SharedBook API is scheduled to become available to beta partners during the first quarter of 2007. For more information, check out the development site.