Music streaming service Spotify is still yet to launch in the U.S., but it already has big ambitions for revolutionising the market there. Buried in its annual report, in an interview with CEO Daniel Ek, the IFPI industry umbrella says: “In the U.S., Spotify’s goal is to increase the number…

Internal memo from Rob Glaser about him stepping down as CEO of RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) after 16 years, followed by one from the new acting CEO Robert Kimball: From: Rob Glaser Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 1:35 PM To: All RealNetworks Employees Subject: Important Personal News Team, Today we’re announcing…

A shocker but a move five years too late: Rob Glaser, the founder and CEO of RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK), is stepping down as the leader of the company after 16 years. The pioneering online video company has appointed Robert Kimball, who till now was the corp EVP, as president and…

RealNetworks’ Chief Operating Officer John Giamatteo will resign effective April 2, the company said today in an SEC filing. No reason was given for his departure, but in a statement, Chairman and CEO Rob Glaser said: “John has been an excellent executive at Real for more than four years. Among…

RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) has made a small acquisition, buying up mobile phone startup Varia Mobile, we have confirmed with the company; TechFlash broke the news earlier today. Varia says its technology “provides immediate publishing, integration and deployment of Web 2.0 desktop services directly to mobile devices.” As an example, it…

The long-standing legal spat between RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) and VeriSign (NSDQ: VRSN) over a mobile messaging partnership the two companies brokered back in 2001 has been resolved—and not in the way that was originally expected. According to a newly-filed 8K, the original arbitration ruling in VeriSign’s favor has been overturned,…

This is not a surprise considering the continued decline of Rhapsody music service in the face of lots of new competition and the general malaise in the digital music market: MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) and RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) are talking about restructuring their Rhapsody America music JV, according to an…

Last week, RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) CEO Rob Glaser talked about how cost cuts helped the company achieve a surprise Q3 profit. Now we’ve confirmed that he’s cutting more—this time, 4 percent of the staff, or roughly 70 jobs out of 1,700. It may not end out as a net 4…

Despite a revenue drop of 8 percent, RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) not only turned a small profit this quarter—it grew sequentially for the first time in a year. “In the context of the current economic environment we’re in, we had a positive quarter,” CEO Rob Glaser told paidContent in an interview…

RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) surprised analysts with a small third quarter profit, due to cost cutting, but the company’s revenue dropped 8 percent. Sales at RealNetworks’ music, technology products and solutions, and games businesses all dropped, compared to a year ago. The only unit to post an increase in sales was…

Maybe it was the anti-trust patrol looking over Apple’s shoulder or the memory of the RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) settlement with *Microsoft*, but the Rhapsody iPhone/iTouch app—the first in the U.S. to offer on-demand streaming music—slid right through the sometimes tortured iTunes approval process. The app, which went live overnight slated…

Wenner Media, which seems to have finally discovered this thing called the Internet, is finally taking back control of RollingStone.com, from RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK), and will relaunch the website early next year. The site has been under RealNetworks’ supervision for the last five years or so, but the deal expires…

Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) says it has approved an iPhone app from Spotify, a music service that some people believe represents a growing threat to iTunes. The decision has been closely watched in part because Apple has previously disallowed apps it deems to duplicate core functions of its handset. Speculation had…

Not the biggest shock ... A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) Tuesday, prohibiting the company from manufacturing and distributing its RealDVD software. The injunction follows a temporary restraining order issued last October at the request of movie studios owned by Disney (NYSE: DIS), Sony (NYSE:…

RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) has laid off 12 employees from its Rhapsody music division, we have confirmed from the company, following news earlier on AllThingsD. This is about 9 percent of that group. The reason: focus on online and mobile applications, rather than the desktop client and the editorial focus that…

RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) warned investors last week that it was going to have a dismal Q2, and today it reported revenues of $135.7 million, which fell short of the Thomson Reuters (NSDQ: TRIN) consensus forecast of $139.2 million. The company’s net loss also widened drastically to $188.3 million, increasing from…

RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) is trying to prepare investors next week for what looks to be a dismal Q2 earnings report. The Seattle-based streaming media company says its Q2 revenues will range between $134 million and $136 million. A consensus forecast from Thomson Reuters (NSDQ: TRIN) analysts have been anticipating Q2…

Struggling social network Hi5 has launched a downloadable games portal in conjunction with *RealNetworks*, adding over 1,500 new titles to the games section it built out earlier this year. These aren’t just casual games; the roster includes best-sellers like GTA: IV and Gears of War, the majority of which will…

RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) has lost an arbitration hearing against VeriSign (NSDQ: VRSN) related to a mobile partnership that the companies were involved with, according to an SEC filing that just came out from Real. The judgment came down in May and there was a further ruling on it under which…