GeoCities Goes Multimedia

With Web technology focusing more on audio and video, community site GeoCities Thursday signed two agreements designed to increase the multimedia options offered to members looking to enhance their Web pages.

The company signed agreements with Real Networks and ThingWorld.com to offer more multimedia content as well as streaming audio and video to its users.

With Real Networks, GeoCities launched GeoMedia, which offers members five MB of streaming RealSystem G2 audio and video. Users can produce and publish original streaming audio and video with Real Networks technology, offered at a promotional rate to GeoCities' estimated four million members.

The community site also began offering GeoThingMaker, a multimedia tool co-branded with ThingWorld. It will allow members to create and publish multimedia content on personal sites. Users can make use of interactive buttons, navigation widgets, games and animated characters and logos. No programming or coding in required the companies said.

"Multimedia is the next big thing in personal Web page publishing, and once again GeoCities is the first community site to bring a valuable tool to its members," stated Thomas R. Evans, president and CEO of GeoCities.