RealNetworks Inks Deal with Vodafone

A day after Napster secured a deal to power the music services on Motorola's new ROKR handsets, RealNetworks has inked a similar agreement with European wireless carrier Vodafone. But Real had to buy into the partnership.

Music offerings on Vodafone are currently powered by Sony NetServices, a joint venture of Sony DADC and Sony Europe, which was acquired Wednesday by Real. Both streaming Internet radio to mobile phones and music downloads are available through the solution.

Downloads and streaming music are available now from Vodafone in Germany, Ireland, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Romania and the UK, while the streaming music service is available in France.

Real says it will further expand the offering with technology it acquired from WiderThan, which provides music services on mobile phones and handles syncing between wireless devices and PCs. The Vodafone agreement is a multiyear deal, but terms were not disclosed.

"We are uniquely suited to offer Vodafone customers a compelling and easy-to-use personalized music experience that takes full advantage of the reach and speed of Vodafone's superior 3G networks across Europe," commented said John Giamatteo, Real's President of Technology Products.

Counting the addition of Vodafone, Real says it now has 12 music on demand customers with more than 196 million mobile subscribers in 11 countries. With the company's Rhapsody music service still struggling against giant iTunes, Real has increasingly focused on the growing mobile market for music and games.