IBM, RealNetworks, Link to Deliver Media Services

RealNetworks and IBM have tie up to jointly provide services for content providers that want to set up their own Internet video and audio businesses, the companies announce at CES.

Companies and organizations that aim to sell and distribute content over the Web will use RealNetworks’s media server and player software to send video and audio over the Internet while IBM will provide its electronic commerce, transaction and database know-how. The deal is not exclusive.

FT.com: People close to the talks said ABC, part of the Disney group, and HBO were among those interested in launching online video stores later this year, leveraging their huge libraries of programmes and video clips. Customers of such services would be able to view DVD-quality video content over broadband internet connections to the home.

News.com: “It’s going to allow Real to expand their subscription model–now they’re going to be able to handle millions of transactions sold every month, so their volume will go up,” said Richard Doherty, president of research firm Envisioneering. He added: “It will empower small artists that don’t have their own cash register to have a chance at music distribution.”

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