RealNetworks Extends Rhapsody Music Service With New Partners

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 8, 2007 - 12:14pm.

Las Vegas - RealNetworks on Monday announced a number of new deals that will expand the availability of its Rhapsody digital music service.

The company said it partnered with TiVo, to integrate Rhapsody with the digital video recorder service later this year so that subscribers to both services can access digital music directly from their TV set-top boxes.

Meanwhile, Nokia plans to add Rhapsody support in its forthcoming Internet tablet, the N800. Logitech, which recently acquired the Squeezebox and Transporter home audio device lines from Slim Devices, will soon offer Rhapsody content directly through the devices.

Additionally, two new Wi-Fi-enabled portable players from manufacturer iRiver will allow songs to be downloaded directly from Rhapsody without the need of a PC. Finally, Seattle-based RealNetworks said that chipmakers SigmaTel and Telechips have licensed its Rhapsody RNA technology, which will allow for direct integration of the service into various consumer electronics devices.

"Our vision for Rhapsody is to deliver seamless and personalized access to millions of songs, on-demand and from any device," said RealNetworks senior vice president Dan Sheeran.