1. Mashups are collections of small applications called widgets that can be embedded into web pages using standards like XML, HTML, JavaScript and CSS.
2. Major companies develop their own widget platforms with tools to create and deploy widgets, such as Google Gadgets, Yahoo Widgets and Amazon Widgets.
3. Widgets are described in XML files but require a widget engine for execution, making their implementation dependent on the hosting platform. Standardization efforts are ongoing but adoption by providers is uncertain.