The Internet has turned shopping into an increasingly solitary experience, allowing consumers to click-to-purchase while sitting alone on their couch wearing fuzzy slippers. Part of Blippy's appeal is that it brings socializing back to shopping, experts say, part of the same trend that has prompted thousands of teenage girls to post "haul videos" on YouTube that show off their closets of stuff.

"Sharing purchases is something that people do online," said Amanda Lenhart, a senior research specialist for the Pew Internet & American Life Project. But, she said, "people often fail to remember who exactly is in their network at any given moment -- even though you've created it yourself."

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