Filed under: Hardware, Humor, iTS, Software, iTunes
Rest of industry slowly catching on to Apple's music integration approach
RealNetwork's CEO Rob Glaser, always one to fire off a comment when he tricks himself into thinking the industry is listening, might be one of the first major partners of Microsoft to publicly express, erm, 'disappointment' with the Redmond company's all-in-one approach with their Zune music player and service, slated to be delivered... oh I dunno, some day: "We think this a case where our technology competitors, in this case specifically Microsoft, have literally thrown the baby out with the bath water." This might also be the first time Microsoft has been accused of literally throwing out a baby, along with other features and products, such as But here's the interesting part: Rob then goes on to threaten (hehe, isn't he cute?) that this gives RealNetworks the opportunity to go find other hardware companies who are "open to integrating tightly with our Rhapsody software platform". Discussion as to whether RealNetworks has even 1 full percentage point of the digital music market aside, it sounds like, after four years, supposed competitors to the iPod + iTunes platform (since when was Microsoft a hardware company?*) are catching on to the possibility that the whole 'integration' strategy Apple uses might actually be a good idea. However, time will have to tell whether this 9th inning enlightenment will pay off for any of these companies.
[* - Microsoft's mice and keyboards (and possibly other peripherals) don't count. Last I heard, they're designed and built by HP.]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
kevin said 12:15PM on 7-28-2006
please make that picture smaller. it is repulsive.
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Roy McKenzie said 12:17PM on 7-28-2006
You don't want to work with us? Fine! We'll take our zero market share and crap software and peddle it to someone else!
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GadgetTV said 12:33PM on 7-28-2006
His picture just makes we want to shop elsewhere. They just need to stick with trying to be a streaming radio service and nothing else.
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David Chartier said 12:36PM on 7-28-2006
Haha #1 - I actually snagged that from RealNetwork's PR page, and its original dimensions were like 2500 x 1900.
;)
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GadgetGav said 12:41PM on 7-28-2006
So poor old Rob has given up on his 'freedomofmusicchoice.org' attempts now then...? Choice and open platforms are not his thing any more, he thinks he can become a big player by closing his platform and working with other competitors.
Wake up Rob! You couldn't beat Apple when you had the backing of Microsoft, what makes you think that you can beat them both with only the help of 4th or 5th tier collaborators..? Microsoft's turn around must be a shock for all the poor saps they signed up to 'Plays For Sure' but even if all those former partners band together, I can't see them being able to take down MS and Apple...
Real should just go back to their original business model of a web media format... either that or just dissolve the company and take home what money is left before tehy blow it all on more of Rob's schemes.
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nezromatron said 12:50PM on 7-28-2006
Real? They're still in business? How?
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jack said 12:55PM on 7-28-2006
"...(since when was Microsoft a hardware company?)..."
Ever hear of a Microsoft mouse or keyboard?
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tim said 12:58PM on 7-28-2006
seattle music magazine recently named him one of the top 25 most influential people in seattle in music....
first i almost threw up in my mouth, then i felt ashamed. the rest of the list was great, local record store owners and what not...then that guy. i thought i was pretty big into the music scene, but i had NEVER heard of that man.
sure i see their stupid logo on the building on first ave every once in a while, but i didnt think anything worth while was going on!
its probably a M$ sponsored magazine
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John S. said 1:30PM on 7-28-2006
So Microsoft has literally thrown the baby out with the bathwater. Have the police been notified?
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David Chartier said 1:45PM on 7-28-2006
#6: Yep. The only mouse I buy is actually a Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer. Been that way for nearly a decade now.
Funny thing about that mouse: like the rest of Microsoft's peripherals like keyboards and mice, they're designed and built by HP.
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Jon said 1:50PM on 7-28-2006
"...their Zune music player and service, slated to be delivered... oh I dunno, some day"
People are saying that Vista's release date may have been pushed back further:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5222736.stm
My belief is that they want to release it after Leopard so that they can copy more of OS X's features.
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Breached said 2:00PM on 7-28-2006
If the whole digital media thing does not work out for Rob, there is always the burgeoning bowling scene:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.09/kingpin.html
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Edward said 2:07PM on 7-28-2006
Q. Is there a worse, or less convenient, media player than Real?
A. No.
Q. Does anyone else feel a bit ill/depressed when downloading a file that needs realplayer to open (i.e., anything from BBC, for some reason)?
A. Probably.
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Brad said 2:32PM on 7-28-2006
Best post of the week in so many ways. Waaaaaay back in the late 90's I was invited to some huge Real party at some huge club in NYC. At the end of it, Glaser actually sacrificed a baby in a crazy demonic offering, surrounded by black candles and goats.
So I think busting Microsoft for just chucking one with the bath water (I mean really, who hasn't tossed a baby or two after too much absinthe) is pretty hypocritical.
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kevin said 3:04PM on 7-28-2006
brad, i was there too! crazy night, huh?
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Robert said 3:10PM on 7-28-2006
12. Q. Is there a worse, or less convenient, media player than Real?
A. Yes. Windows Media Player for Mac. Even the Flip3Mac plug-in is a hit-or-miss (mostly miss) proposition with streaming content.
Q. Does anyone else feel a bit ill/depressed when downloading a file that needs realplayer to open (i.e., anything from BBC, for some reason)?
A. I don't let small stuff like this depress me. It could be, and often is, worse. Such as when the streaming content requires WMP.
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doc said 4:05PM on 7-28-2006
"...(since when was Microsoft a hardware company?)..."
Uh, XBox? XBox 360?
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Jon said 5:21PM on 7-28-2006
The BBC offers you the choice between Real and Windows Media. That's always a very difficult choice for me, as they're both terrible. I normally pick WM though because it means that I don't need to install RealPlayer then immediately uninstall it as soon as the clip has finished playing and then take a shower because I feel so unclean.
Interestingly, in their articles they praise Apple's products but they don't use QuickTime on their site. A lot of people have QuickTime installed on their systems now that the iPod is so popular.
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Brad said 6:00PM on 7-28-2006
Kevin - and messy.
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Abe said 1:35AM on 7-29-2006
#11 - You've uncovered the true reason for Vista's delay: like the rest of us, Microsoft has bought into the neverending Mac cycle: Should I buy a Mac now? Oh no, let's wait until after WWDC, MWSF, ...
Conversations in Redmond go like this:
Q: Should we release Vista now?
A: Are you kidding? Steve Jobs has a keynote coming up.
Q: Can we fix a new release date?
A: Yeah, we wait until OS X features have been frozen for three or more years. Then we make our move to trump them...
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