IBM Blesses RealNetworks For On-Demand Effort
The goal is to offer a package that media companies, ISPs and others can use to deliver up "on demand" consumer digital audio and video services, according to both IBM and RealNetworks. The news comes out of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The "solution, which can be hosted by IBM Global Services or implemented in house at the customer site, is expected to be available within a year.
"Together [IBM and RealNetworks] will enable our global customers to quickly offer secure and high-quality media services to their consumers whenever they want it and wherever they want it - at their TV, their PC, in their car, or with their phone," said Rob Glaser, CEO of RealNetworks in a statement.
RealNetworks, which unveiled the Real 10 technology this week, has been locked for years in a bloody battle with Microsoft for dominance of streaming digital media. On December 18, 2003, RealNetworks took its battle to court, suing Microsoft alleging the company of trying to illegally monopolize digital media by forcing every Windows user to take Microsoft's media player, whether they want it or not.
IBM with its Linux push has already opened up a major front against Microsoft with which it also competes in databases. It's software group is also battling to win ISVs over from Microsoft.
Researcher IDC predicts that the market for Web-delivered audio and video programming will hit the billion dollar mark by 2007
The solution will rely on the IBM's WebSphere Digital Media Enabler and Commerce software and DB2 database. Also part of the deal are open APIs that would all third-party applications, including customer support or subscription management, to link into the on-demand service, IBM said in a statement.
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