“RealNetworks on Wednesday reported a wider net loss and brisk revenue growth compared with the same period a year ago, and announced that the company’s president, Larry Jacobsen, is stepping down,” Evan Hansen reports for CNET News. “The Seattle-based digital media company posted a net loss of $10.4 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $2.8 million, or 2 cents a share, in the first quarter of 2003. Revenues hit $60.4 million, a gain of 29 percent over the 2003 first quarter.”
“RealNetworks last year acquired online music company Listen.com and took over its Rhapsody music subscription service. Real also offers a Net radio service and launched a music download service last year. RealNetworks added 100,000 new music subscribers in the first quarter, for a total of 450,000 music subscribers, the company said. Music revenue grew to $12.3 million, up 55 percent from $7.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2003,” Hansen reports. “RealNetworks’ earnings report came as Apple Computer celebrated the one-year anniversary of its iTunes Music Store, widely seen as the leader in purchased music downloads. Apple said it has sold 70 million downloads since the store opened last year, giving it 70 percent of the commercial music download business. Glaser has for months exorted Apple to open up its proprietary music format to third parties such as RealNetworks. Those pleas have so far been rebuffed, however.”
Full article here.
Wow, I can see why everyone want Apple to have a subscriptions style store, so they will lose money. LOL. Will we see public begging from Glaser now?
Glaser needs to wake up and smell that old coffee brewing. Real Networks cannot beat and I mean cannot beat Microsoft on their own turf. It’s a lose lose strategy! If I was CEO of Real, I’d definitely would not place all my eggs in a single basket and hope for the best. It’s time to make Real and its media content cross-platform and compete against Microsoft where they’re absolutely vulnerable (anything not Windows)!
To quote one of my favourite terrace songs (normally sung at County fans than by us):-
Going down, going down, going down
Going down, going down, going down
Going down, going down, going down
Going do-wn, go-ing down.
So they are losing money on each sale but making up for it in volume?!
ABQ, which means that the more volume they get, the more they lose.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” /> How smart of Real et al. LOL.
Has REAL ever made a REAL profit?
I guess it’s possible, like AMAZON to burn through mega-tons of money, and eventually find your magic recipe for making money.. Like the way AMAZON lost money on every book sold, but created a SPACE for other retailers to flock to. And then AMAZON charges them to set up shop around their castle.
It seems that Jobs and Apple are so enamored of the HUGE marketshare they have for legal downloaded music that they won’t yield any of it, even if it meant more iPods sold.
If ITMS is such a MARGINALLY profitable endeavor, who cares if other music sellers take up the slack, and make the iPod more desirable?
Still, the ITMS marketshare is it’s own kind of power, and the possibility of parlaying that into more money and profits in the future might be very large indeed.
It would keep ME awake at nights, If I had to make the decision.
David Vesey
Why is there no such thing as a Dr. Kevorkian for companies, because Real are the best candidate at the moment for assisted suicide or any form of euthanasia.
If no one will put Glaser out of his misery, can they at least put him out of mine so I don’t have to listen to the strange whining sound anymore.
terrace songs? County fans?
huh, Dave? King’s English to westside pond abberation translation needed.
Joe
Back when I was a youngster, the football grounds of England were surrounded by terraces where the supporters would stand and sing to drown out the songs from the opposing team’s fans as the game was played. It was sort of psychological warfare for 90 minutes. One such football club, Stockport County, had and still has amongst its (albeit small) number of fans one Dave H. The terraces are now replaced with seating, and the songs don’t have the same ring to them without so many supporters crammed together. “Going down” was used to taunt a team about to be relegated to a lower division of the league, which used to happen to Stockport a lot, and mathematically still could this season unless with we win on Saturday, or a couple of the teams below us lose.
For more information, Click here
Hope that clears things up a little
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” />
Man, even if it weren’t so much fun trading jibes here, I would still show up for the education. Go Stockport!
Thanks Joe. The Blue and White Army appreciate it.
christ it’s a small world…
i come from stockport!! this was the last place i expected it to be mentioned!!!
he he
uhhh i’m not english..
annnyway.. in the last 2 minutes i read sth saying Glaser thought Jobs’ comments about Real being unsuccessful were ridiculous..
ahem..2+2=4…
isn’t it obvious? shit software+no ipod support+Real bad mojo= no customer loyalty=2nd rate Brand..
Kiss my ass Jaba Glaser