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Technology Stocks : RealNetworks (NASDAQ:RNWK) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Tom Pulley who wrote (4082)	8/18/1999 11:46:00 PM
From: soup	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 5843

>Apple today announced details of its strategic agreement with Akamai Technologies, noting that it has selected Akamai as its exclusive network provider for QuickTime TV (QTV) and that in June, it invested $12.5 million in Akamai for approximately five percent of the shares at the time. Akamai today also announced that Cisco has made an investment in the company. biz.yahoo.com Our "Who is Akamai?" feature has an overview of the company's history and growth as well as a rundown of the products/services it offers to its customers (including Apple). macnn.com One reader astutetly notes that Apple's investment has apparently "more than quadrupled" since Cisco paid $49 million today for a 4 percent stake in the company. (Apple paid about a quarter of that for a slightly larger stake.) Another reader, however, writes: "Though I have no intimate knowledge of the facts, a more realistic look at the situation is that Apple valued the exclusive license for QT TV to them at about $38 million, that being the approximate difference between the $12 million paid, and Cisco's stake value."< macnn.com ---------------------------- This exclusive part caught me. One of the points that RNWK boosters make is that AAPL's focus on QT is inevitably diluted by other priorities. Also, if AAPL is giving QT away, how are they going to make money off it (and fund/justify continued development)? The Akamai investment appears to address both issues. Akamai is going to make money marketing/providing QT streaming services and AAPL is going to profit from its stake in Akamai. (IPO anyone?) AAPL generally has done well with its strategic investments; AOL, ARMHY and most recently Samsung. quote.yahoo.com