Yahoo Shoposphere: Online Shopping Meets Everybody’s Favorites Lists   - 44,719 Views,

Yahoo has unveiled the beta of their Shoposphere program, an online shopping portal designed to integrate online shopping with access to published “favorites” lists from other users called “pick lists”. You can think of Shoposphere as Yahoo Shopping meets Epinions’ reviews meets Amazon’s ListMania. Or maybe, shopping by blog.

Or, as Yahoo themselves put it, “This is where you can discover new, fun, and interesting products organized into “Pick Lists” by the Yahoo! Shopping community.”

You can also think of Yahoo’s Shoposphere as a great big fat time sink. Because darn it, it’s fun reading these various “pick lists” that assorted people have put together.

You see, here’s how it works: you register with Shoposphere, and then you can create your own pick lists, and publish them for anyone else to see. Similar, again, to Amazon’s ListMania.

Where Shoposphere differs is in the content and tone. First of all, you can put almost anything you want on your list. Anything which can purchased online. Second, you can pretty much say whatever you want about the things which you have on your pick list.

Witness, for example, Joe Lazarus’ list of “Gifts NOT for Your Girlfriend”, which includes Britney Spears perfume (”cheap perfume. she’ll hate you and she’ll smell bad… no one wins” says Joe), and Football Fanatic (”a gift for yourself and pretend it is for her,” explains Joe).

Although so far my personal favourite is the “I want to be Napoleon Dynamite” pick list published by Laura B., and including Napolean wig and glasses, Tater Tots, and Tecnica moon boots.

Want to make your own pick list? It’s easy as can be, and fun. In fact, another time sink.

So check it out, at http://shopping.yahoo.com/shoposphere/