In fact, the work on OpenID provided the basis for the founding of a breakout company, called Janrain.

FORBES: Janrain Raises $33 Million To Supercharge Social Media

To this end, he helped to create the OpenID protocol.

FORBES: Janrain Raises $33 Million To Supercharge Social Media

This article is by Larry Drebes, a founding member of the non-profit OpenID Foundation and the chief executive of Janrain, a provider of user management solutions for the social web.

FORBES: How Social Login Is Changing Business--and Your Privacy