RealNetworks' Rob Glaser on why Apple's model must be stopped |
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RealNetworks' Rob Glaser on why Apple's model must be stopped
Glaser
RealNetworks Chairman Rob Glaser has battled Apple over the years. And that antagonistic relationship was on display -- albeit subtly -- this morning as Glaser encouraged the mobile industry to work together in a more collaborative and open manner.
As it stands now, Glaser said that Apple is the "big winner" with a strong vertical solution around its iPhone ecosystem. But, at least in the view of Glaser, that's not necessarily the best way forward.
"It is incredible what Apple has done in this period, but fundamentally on a vertical paradigm," said Glaser, speaking at the Mobile Breakfast Series in Seattle. "If that's the way the industry plays out -- and there are a couple of vertical stovepipes that are closed -- A: we will have a much slower pace of innovation than we've ever had and B: there will be a tremendous loss in terms of value creation versus it being more horizontal."
Glaser, who left the CEO role at RealNetworks earlier this year, said it is unclear how things will play out. While he cited positive developments around the Google Android platform, which suggest a more collaborative mobile environment in which carriers, technology providers and developers work closely together, Glaser noted that it is not "preordained who is going to win."
In the PC market, Glaser noted that the horizontal structure won with the Mac attaining a small marketshare. "I don't think it is inevitable which way it is going to go. It is still very much a jump ball," he said.
There's a lot at stake. Glaser said that the mobile computing industry represents a bigger opportunity than the PC business, citing figures which show that there will be more smartphones (or superphones as Glaser calls them) than PCs by the year 2013.
Glaser closed his talk by offering a quote form Benjamin Franklin. It read:
"We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately."
Obviously, Glaser feels pretty strongly about encouraging a new open approach even though he admits that can be tricky given the various stakeholders involved.
During the Q&A portion of the talk, Tricia Duryee of MocoNews asked Glaser to elaborate on the challenges of integrating various services on mobile devices. Here's how Glaser responded:
Related: "Rob Glaser's advice to startups: It's better to be lucky, than good"
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