Seattle - RealNetworks (NASD: RNWK) on Thursday announced the release of its new RealPlayer, following a five-month public beta, and introduced a new feature for the premium version of the player that lets users transfer downloaded video content to the Apple iPod nano, iPod Classic and iPod Video. Available for a one-time fee of $39.95, the RealPlayer Plus lets users move the non-DRM protected videos they have download from websites using the software onto an iPod.

Seattle - RealNetworks CEO Rob Glaser on Tuesday posted responses on the company's blog to questions posed by PaidContent.org's Rafat Ali, about the upcoming RealPlayer upgrade that will allow for downloading of most any streaming Web video. During the exchange, Glaser addresses copyright issues posed by the ability of the application to record any streaming video. "The new RealPlayer is just like a VCR, a DVR, or a photocopier: It knows nothing about whether or not a piece of content is copyrighted. Like these earlier video players, the new RealPlayer facilitates many legal and appropriate uses, for instance downloading public domain content and content for which the owner has given permission." The full exchange is available at the link below.

Carlsbad, Calif. - RealNetworks announced on Thursday that the newest version of its RealPlayer will contain a feature that allows users to download any video they find online for later viewing via the RealPlayer, and even burn them to DVD and CD.