One of the next big steps in social media is to accept payment for goods.

People may soon be ordering a parcel delivery directly from a networking site, after it was claimed that shopping is about to go social.

Some payment providers are already getting on board with this, by supplying e-commerce platforms for brands to sell directly through Facebook, according to smartcompany.com.

Social media research Ross Dawson told the website: "You can browse together what's on the websites, look at different things, and comment on them. So you can go shopping with your friends, but do it in an online context."

There seems to be social shopping sites springing up all over the place, with the likes of Groupon having "spawned dozens of clones", the article notes.

Meanwhile, FourSquare co-founder Dennis Crowley reckons that social media sites may soon allow linking to credit card accounts to facilitate online shopping.

Once the links are established, consumers would be able to keep track of their purchases from their online profile, Daily Finance reported.

Posted by Matt Watts 

Article Added: 14/10/2010 09:17:02