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Texas Instruments and RealNetworks Announce Strategic Alliance to Extend Video Experience to Next-Generation Internet Audio and Wireless Devices
Native Support for RealAudio and RealVideo in TI's DSP Technology Enables Enhanced Quality at a Fraction of Today's Power Requirements
LAS VEGAS (Jan. 8, 2001) -- Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NYSE:TXN) and RealNetworks(r) Inc. (Nasdaq: RNWK) today announced a strategic alliance to provide Internet multimedia solutions for next generation wireless and digital audio devices. This is the first such agreement TI has struck to embed streaming downloadable audio and video capability into its platform for next-generation wireless consumer devices.
As a result of this collaboration - bringing together TI, the world leader in programmable digital signal processing (DSP) and analog, and RealNetworks, the world leader in Internet media delivery - users of TI DSP-based Internet appliances such as portable Internet audio players, mobile handsets, and personal digital assistants (PDAs) can watch breaking news and sports highlights, listen to music and receive the latest entertainment and weather updates - all through RealNetworks formats.
"We are excited to be working with RealNetworks, the leader in digital media delivery, and to enable anyone using a device powered by TI programmable DSPs access to the vast amount of Internet digital media that is in RealNetworks' format," said Kun Lin, vice president of the Imaging and Audio Group, TI. "We chose RealNetworks because its market-leading platform enables a broad array of digital media experiences - making it cost-effective and scalable for broadcasters, and convenient for consumers, to use next-generation wireless and portable Internet devices."
"With today's announcement, RealNetworks is extending RealPlayer, the world's most popular Internet media player, to a new range of consumer wireless and digital audio and video devices," said Len Jordan, senior vice president of consumer products at RealNetworks, Inc. "We're excited to be working with Texas Instruments and using the processing power, low-power consumption and upgradability of their industry-leading, programmable DSPs to give consumers access to their favorite Internet media."
Under the agreement, TI will integrate RealNetworks' RealPlayer® technology into TI's high performance, low power DSPs, including its DSP-based Open Multimedia Applications Platform™ (OMAP) architecture and fourth generation Internet audio DSP, the DA250. TI's OMAP processor is an applications engine that makes real-time communications-based technologies a reality in wireless handsets and advance mobile computing devices. This collaboration enables users of TI's OMAP and programmable DSPs to easily incorporate support for RealNetworks into their products and provide access to digital media in the RealNetworks format, which is used to deliver content on more than 85 percent of all Web pages that feature streaming media. The support for RealAudio and RealVideo is scheduled to be available in Q2 of 2001.
In recent months, RealNetworks has delivered on its commitment to extending RealPlayer, which currently has more than 170 million unique registered users, to wireless and other next-generation devices. The company is continuing to build on nearly a dozen strategic agreements in the consumer appliance arena with set-top box manufacturers, portable music device makers, cell phone manufacturers, and makers of other consumer appliances.
With the recent introduction of RealAudio 8, the new Internet audio standard, consumers can now get CD-quality playback at half the file size of MP3, while broadcasters can realize substantial cost savings by delivering superior audio quality at reduced bandwidth. RealVideo 8 enables consumers to view high-quality, full-motion video using dial-up modems, half-screen VHS-quality at mainstream broadband rates, and near DVD-quality video for those using high capacity networks. Both RA8 and RV8 are key parts of RealSystem iQ, an innovative media delivery architecture RN announced in December.
TI's low-power TMS320C5000™ series of DSPs supports all of the widely used digital audio compression and security formats allowing manufacturers to update features and functions with a simple software download, rather than by upgrading internal hardware. Additionally, TI's low-power DSPs increase the battery life of Internet audio players by 70% over its competitors, and its small size enables manufacturers to design devices with extremely compact form factors.
TI's DSP has been designed into more than 70 next-generation portable digital audio players. TI DSPs have been chosen by eight of the top ten consumer electronics manufacturers, including Sony, RCA, Sanyo, Samsung, Toshiba and LG Electronics. In addition, TI's DSP-based OMAP architecture delivers advanced wireless Internet and multimedia functionality, without compromising battery life essential to wireless communications devices. It is fast becoming the de facto standard applications platform for 2.5 and 3G with public endorsements by manufacturers including Nokia, Ericsson, Sony and Handspring, as well as key software and OS developers.
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