Before posting, I did a search on Real Player and iPod and came up empty

Is there a way to rename downloaded AAC tunes from Realy Player to iTunes/iPod compatible files (m4a)? Its not just as easy as right clicking on the file in Windows Explorer and renaming the extension is it?

I only ask, because Real Player's current promotion seems like a great excuse to drink Heineken! Free AAC songs encoded at 192.

Can you get them on an iPod?

Most probably not. Real's DRM system is not compatible with Apple's.

Speaking of Real's Heineken promotion... I found it weird while watching TV last night that Real's promotion came on right after iPod's latest ad. In fact, it came on so fast after the iPod ad you would think that the two ads were joined as one. I don't know if this was on purpose or a fluke but if it wasn't a fluke it seems Real is trying to pass their service as being compatible with the iPod which it isn't at the moment. Though I have heard that Real has sent a request to Apple about working together and making Real's DRM compatible with the iPod.

And Jobs, in typical Apple fashion, told Real to get lost. I guess Apple did not learn from not allowing 3rd parties to make products that use their operating system/hardware (in this case the iPod). I guess conceding a 97% market share to M$, who does follow this business model, did not teach them a lesson.

Apple - great, innovative, product driven company that knows nothing about how to run a successful business. With their product superiority, they should dominate the PC landscape instead of clinging to a niche market share.

I am refering to PCs of course. Apple still dominates DAPs, just like they did with PCs until around 1985.

I never understood Apple's strategy there either. I recently bought an iPod myself but I don't use any digital music stores so this isn't really an issue to me. However, I don't see Apple's reasoning for not opening up the iPod for other DRM protections. Since Apple's big money maker is the iPod and not their iTunes Music Store I don't see a reason why not to make other stores' DRM protections compatible with the iPod. If Real advertised that their store was compatible with the iPod then people would buy an iPod thus increasing Apple's profits. So Jobs "Apple-only" attitude is just going to come back and bite him yet again. Companies want to work with Apple on the iPod, I personally would take advantage of that because it will only benefit Apple.

Right on.

I agree as well. I would chalk it up to Steve Jobs' arrogance. In the Apple Quarterly conference call Steve Jobs replied on the subject of Real Audio by saying something to the effect "We have the number one MP3 player and the number one online music store....blah blah blah..."

I believe it was Andy Grove of Intel who used the mantra "Only the paranoid survive." Steve Jobs is too full of himself and his vision.

What a shame.

Sean