From today's front page of TheStreet.Com there is a RNWK article.
In the past I have posted about the potential of EDIG and video. Any thoughts out there about this part of the article posted below???:
"The support of a beta version of RealNetworks G2 platform that IBM's (IBM:NYSE) Lotus Notes and Lotus Domino can now support, allowing corporate users to attach video and audio clips within their emails."
Here is the article in its entirety:
RealNetworks Conference:
CEO Paddles Through
Streaming Media Worries
By Spencer E. Ante
Staff Reporter
5/6/99 11:00 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO -- Despite the skillful diplomacy
of RealNetworks (RNWK:Nasdaq) CEO Rob
Glaser, a keynote panel at the RealNetworks
Conference '99 about streaming media quickly
erupted into a controversy over MP3 files. Nor could
Glaser avoid addressing the dreaded M-word:
Microsoft (MSFT:Nasdaq).
The panel, part of the third annual conference held
at the San Francisco Marriott hotel, doubled as a
special Webcast of ZDTV's Silicon Spin, a sort of
McLaughlin Group for the high-tech set. Hosted by
industry analyst and cyber-cutup John Dvorak, the
panel featured Glaser, Kagan Associates Senior
Vice President Larry Gerbrandt and New York
Times correspondent John Markoff.
Instead of painting this digital audio compression
format as a record label's nightmare, Glaser sought
to portray MP3 as a boon to the music business by
comparing it to the VCR. "The movie market is now
four times the size it was before VCRs were
introduced," said Glaser. "I think the same thing will
happen to the music download market."
Music labels are freaking out over MP3 files
because they don't prevent the illegal copying of
music. But most of the analysts argued that MP3
would be hard to stop. "Copyright holders have
always had fears about technology," said
Gerbrandt. "To the extent that technology opens up
new markets, the copyright issues will get
resolved."
Glaser sought to downplay the fears about
bootlegging by stressing his company's support of
several security measures. RealNetworks, he said,
backs the Serial Copy Management System, which
allows consumers to make one copy but not a copy
of a copy. RealNetworks products will also support
multiple security options, including the music
industry's Secure Digital Music Initiative, which was
created last December by the Recording Industry
Association of America. That initiative, according
a press release on the SDMI Web site, aims to
"develop an open, interoperable architecture and
specification for digital music security ... answer
consumer demand for convenient accessibility to
quality digital music, enable copyright protection for
artists' work and enable technology and music
companies to build successful businesses."
Asked if RealNetworks' business would be undercut
by free servers from Microsoft and MP3, Glaser said
it wouldn't because the company would continue to
lead the market by creating new generations of
innovative products and services.
But at least one panelist wasn't convinced. "Pretty
soon it'll be MPEG 98," said Dvorak, taking the
obligatory jab at the 800-pound gorilla up in
Redmond, Wash.
The Once and Future RealNetworks
Glaser kicked off the conference with an hourlong
pep talk titled "The Future of Media Delivery."
Addressing 1,300 people in a packed ballroom of
the San Francisco Marriott, Glaser reviewed the
successes of the company and looked ahead to
more conquests.
Right now, Glaser said 400,000 sites employ
streaming audio or video and 1,700 live radio
stations broadcast over the Internet. Of those
streaming sites, said Glaser, 45,000 use
RealNetworks G2 servers. Citing figures from media
research firm Kagan Associates, Glaser pegged the
value of the streaming media market at $270
million, up from $120 million in 1997.
"We're just scratching the surface," said Glaser,
adding that the broadcast industry is valued at $120
billion. "We're setting the stage for the next phase
of incredible growth.
The company's most recent step ahead is
RealJukebox, the company's new streaming
software released Monday. Dave Richards,
RealNetworks' vice president for consumer
products, said RealJukebox was downloaded
250,000 times in its first two days. With the release
of the Jukebox, which records CDs onto a PC and
plays MP3 files, RealNetworks has set for itself a
new strategic direction, aiming to establish a
leadership position in the new market for the digital
distribution of music.
To show the company's support of the MP3
movement, Richards demonstrated a prototype
version of the RCA Lyra, a new MP3 player
announced Monday, by using a memory card to
transfer a music file from the desktop to the
portable device. Glaser also said that 30 Web sites
now support direct music downloads. "We really
think we've pushed the ball forward to create a
digital distribution marketplace," said Glaser.
In a separate session, Brett Goodwin,
RealNetworks' manager of intranet products, said
the company was showing strong growth inside
corporate America. RealNetworks' user base in
companies, said Goodwin, more than doubled over
the past year. He also said that 25% of Fortune
500 companies have either purchased or are
evaluating the purchase of RealNetworks products.
Glaser also announced the release of several new
products:
A new advertising application that allows
advertisers to measure the placement as
well as the duration of the advertising.
The RealPlayer G2 Update 2 for Windows
and RealPlayer G2 final release for
Macintosh. (The latter announcement
garnered a huge round of applause from
Apple (AAPL:Nasdaq) devotees.)
The support of a beta version of
RealNetworks G2 platform that IBM's
(IBM:NYSE) Lotus Notes and Lotus
Domino can now support, allowing corporate
users to attach video and audio clips within
their emails.
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