Data Backup Digest

For many, the name RealPlayer probably begins back bad memories. Initially released nearly two decades ago, RealPlayer was a video player that got a lot of slack for being intrusive and badly supportive of various file formats. Nevertheless, it made its way onto a lot of computers, but in recent years the likes of VLC Player have made a program like RealPlayer a thing of the past.

Now RealPlayer is trying to reinvent itself and the founder of the company Rob Glaser returned to the board to try and make that happen. It’s his hope that moving RealPlayer into video hosting is going to be enough to save the product in the highly competitive modern marketing. Enter RealPlayer Cloud…

Although cloud services are certainly nothing new, RealPlayer Cloud is hoping to drive out a niche by focussing only on videos. The service, launched in North America in late 2013, allows users to upload and share their videos. However, unlike YouTube, which is mainly focussed on making videos available immediately for public consumption, RealPlayer Cloud is focussing on sharing with friends and family.

While it’s certainly true that it’s possible to make private videos on YouTube, RealPlayer Cloud is hoping to make the process much easier and smoother, especially for those who aren’t quite so tech-savvy. RealPlayer Cloud also allows videos to be shared publically via Twitter or Facebook.

Speaking to the Guardian, Rob Glaser said, “Hit the button and it just works – we do all the transcoding, transmuxing, balancing of bitrate and bandwidth for you in the background, so whatever device you're viewing the content on the video just magically works”.

There are localised versions of the program available and the service is also available on iOS, Android, Kindle Fire and Windows. It’s also accessible via Chromecast or the Roku. It’s the company’s aim to have the Cloud available on every device possible, including smart TVs.

Videos can either be uploaded through these apps or through the RealPlayer Cloud website. A link to the video can then be sent through various communication methods (e.g. text message), allowing for quick and simple sharing.

It’s free to sign up, with users getting 2GB of storage. This can be upgraded through recommending the service to others – when they sign up, both the original user and the friend get an extra GB of storage.

However, it’s questionable how much use 2GB of storage actually is, especially in this age of HD video. Users can pay $4.99/month for 25GB of storage, $9.99/month for 100GB or $29.99/month for 300GB of storage. Frankly, when compared to competitors who offer a wider service, that’s not exactly great.

It’s unlikely that RealPlayer Cloud is something that’s going to stand out, despite the company claiming they have over 500,000 users of the service. The fact of the matter is that the cloud market is crowded as it is and many competitors offer a far superior service.

RealPlayer Cloud is available right now. You can find out more information on the service by visiting their official website.