Google doesn't want to be social, they just want "social graph" data--two very different things. It's why they've failed.

Google needs to offer a compelling reason for people to transfer their profiles and hang around Google services in order to get the "social" part somewhat right. And then Google will succeed in getting the data they value most: the things you explicitly "like" or favorite, in this case,(with a bright yellow star). And that's where I think Freebase comes in--or so I hope.