RealNetworks now owns all Audio files

[TO...@aol.com]

Looks like RealNetworks ( RealAudio ) now owns all audio
files sitting on Servers. The patent extends to any server that
'sends' a file which is actually compressed audio.

Hmm... I wonder... is this going to require a new
'Never_send_audio_mime_type_unless_royalties_paid'
Apache httpd.conf configuration directive?

Press release...

REALNETWORKS PUTS ITS STAMP ON AUDIO-ON-DEMAND
RealNetworks was granted a patent Tuesday for an "audio-on-demand
communication system" that "provides real-time playback of audio data
transferred via telephone lines or other communication links," as a
continuation of a patent the company was first granted in 1998. The patent
covers the basic elements of a widely used methodology of streaming audio
over the Internet. As described in the patent abstract: "at the request of a
user at a subscriber PC, an audio server transmits the compressed audio data
over the communication link to the subscriber PC. The subscriber PC receives
and decompresses the transmitted audio data in less than real-time using
only the processing power of the CPU within the subscriber PC." Bob Kimball,
associate general counsel for RealNetworks, said, "We view this as being a
significant patent -- we're very proud of (it)." The grant enforces
additional claims based on the 1998 patent, for which Real first filed in
1994, at the dawn of streaming, Kimball said. But, he added: "This is not a
fundamental change in course for us."