Wikis in the workplace have become so hot an item that two companies that offer commercial wiki services are duking it out in the marketplace. The battle got visible when The Walt Disney Company, which has publicly voiced its support for Socialtext, suddenly dropped its contract and signed one with rival JotSpot. It’s JotSpot’s first major customer, although thousands of people have tested the software, which differs from Socialtext in its building of additional applications designed to tap into other business data, such as material from Excel spreadsheets. According to a San Jose Mercury News article, Socialtext founder and CEO Ross Mayfield says Disney picked JotSpot because of some features his company wasn’t ready to add. The article also notes that JotSpot has beaten Socialtext in the battle for venture capital.

Speaking of venture capital, the article also notes as an afterthought that Woodside Fund venture capitalist Tom Shields has started his own wiki at www.venturewiki.com, “to create a debate about best standards among venture capitalists and other venture-related professionals in the valley.”