MACR/ATHM/RNWK: New WAVX Connections?
I'm a new member and WAVX investor who's been lurking for the past few weeks. Want to thank the WAVX longs who were a big part of my DD on this terrific company. Wish I'd hooked up with you much earlier!
I noticed this article this evening. Could it be a hint of another WAVX announcement on the way? (Most interesting part at end of article, text of which I put in bold.)
news.com
Macromedia's Web Entertainment Vision
By Paul Festa
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
May 25, 1999, 12:55 p.m. PT
SAN FRANCISCO--More than a thousand Web developers at Macromedia's ninth
annual user conference here heard chief executive Rob Burgess outline a vision
of the Web as a mainstream entertainment medium, with paying users.
In addition to a new alliance with @Home and a technology agreement with RealNetworks,
Burgess today said Macromedia is developing an e-commerce infrastructure to make the
purchase of games and other software over the Web easier.
Burgess addressed a standing-room crowd and Webcast audience the day after
Macromedia announced a flurry of significant moves, including the formation of a wholly
owned spin-off called Shockwave.com and the release of two virtual appliances for
playback and storage of animated multimedia content.
Developers interrupted this morning's keynote with frequent ovations as Burgess
demonstrated the new products and painted a bright future for Macromedia's product line.
"Every other media type, every other medium, has become an entertainment medium,"
Burgess said. "The time is now [for the Web]. The quality is getting there, the reach is
there, and now the business models are going to follow."
For Macromedia, that business model is a mix of charging for some premium software,
such as the newly announced Shockmachine for content storage and management;
aggregating content at Shockrave.com, launched last year, at the newly announced
Shockwave.com; and aggregating content in the Shockmachine and its free counterpart,
Shockwave Remote.
Macromedia, which has scored a string of bundling wins that has put support for its Flash
technology in major operating systems and browsers, today
said RealNetworks would integrate Flash 4 into future
versions of the RealSystem G2 multimedia software.
Macromedia also said it has entered into an alliance with
cable Internet access and content provider @Home, under
which @Home's Enliven technology will be integrated into
Macromedia's Flash and Shockwave players. Enliven is a
rich-media advertising unit that @Home acquired last year.
Even as Burgess zeroes in on an entertainment-driven Web,
Macromedia is ramping up its corporate offerings. The firm
last year launched a learning software division, and company
president Norm Meyrowitz today emphasized the degree to
which companies including Intel, Microsoft, and IBM are using Flash and Shockwave
animation in their intranets and extranets.
Burgess also alluded to, but did not elaborate on, a move within Macromedia to build
e-commerce infrastructure to increase the payoff for content sites and tools. The
infrastructure would automatically transact sales and allow for micropayments, keep track
of virtual coupons and subscriptions, and streamline the process of paying for content.
"Initially the intention was to have a business model where sites like Shockwave.com and
the Shockmachine just sold advertising," said Macromedia vice president and general
manager of Web publishing David Mendels after Burgess's keynote. "But over time we plan
to sell content through the machine."
In one example, Mendels said Hasbro could offer a free version of its Frogger game through
the Shockmachine while offering a premium version for sale.
Related news stories
• Macromedia creates Shockwave unit May 24, 1999
• Macromedia debuts online education system April 28, 1999
• Shocking privacy concerns abound March 11, 1999
• Macromedia patching Shockwave privacy hole March 11, 1999 |
