Real and Microsoft sign deals today
Every time time I draw in breath to bash Real Networks these days I pause a moment to reflect upon their glory days. Remember those early days, when Real Player was this slick, sweet little plug-in that let you stream music? As with so many tech companies, their energy and innovation turned to confusion floundering as the "newness" wore off and competitors entered their space. And don't think I hate Real; I actually revel in their pluck. I just wish they could have come up with something a little more innovative than this.By "this," I'm referring to the partnership between Real and Microsoft, announced today. Actually there were three separate agreements. One was just a settlement of that nasty lawsuit Real foisted upon MS a couple of years ago. Wow, people are still doing that to make money? Anyway, that's over with. Usher in a new era! Keep reading for details...
The other initiatives are a little more interesting. First, there's the obvious synergy between Real's Rhapsody service and the juggernaut of online cross-promos: MSN. Naturally this means better Windows Media support with Rhapsody to Go as well. For those of you thinking "iPod killer," I'm thinking the same thing, and remembering how Real offered Apple an olive branch some time back. Apple, of course, declined. So Apple's loss is Microsoft's gain with Rhapsody somewhat under their belt. Real's Rhapsody will be available via MSN's homepage, MSN Music, and MSN Search and Messenger. Some cool technologies are going to come out of this, like the ability to share songs while chatting, in "a convenient and legal way" according to the press release.
The final initiative involves games, which I'd almost forgotten were even offered by Real. But casual games are a hot market, and the likes of Bejeweled and Scrabble are hot picks on PDAs, phones, and other devices (including the PC). So the MS connection will extend these to things like MSN Games and Xbox Live Arcade (for the 360).
Now I wonder if the two will somehow team up to offer any video options in the future, or does Real CEO Glaser still sting from that WMV burn? I also wonder what will become of Real's Mac support. But mostly I wonder how soon all this is going to happen, and if this will be the leverage Microsoft needs to pry iTunes away from more folks.
