APIs: A Strategy Guide (Paperback)

APIs are a big deal and they are getting bigger. Companies such as Google, Facebook, Apple, and Twitter have exposed amazing technological solutions to the public, transforming existing businesses and creating new industries. Central to these companies’ successes are APIs that link people and their computing devices to the underlying platforms that power each business and that tie these companies together behind the scenes.

This book will help you understand the business potential of APIs and decide what to do about it. It will raise your awareness of the importance of APIs and help you evaluate how an API can help you succeed in your market. This is not a programming manual but a best practices manual that will help you understand both the opportunity and the tactical issues related to creating an API.

Making an API work to create a new channel is not just a matter of technology. An API must be considered in terms of business strategy, marketing, and operations as well as the technical aspects of programming and operations. This book, written by Daniel Jacobson, Director of Engineering—API for Netflix, Greg Brail, CTO of Apigee, and Dan Woods, CTO and Editor, CITO Research, is informed by the authors’ experiences in the trenches of API development and deployment. It includes perspectives from numerous industry leaders including the New York Times, NPR, AccuWeather, Netflix, Innovato, Tumblr, XO Group, Inc., and others whose APIs are changing the way they do business.