RealNetworks to launch download product.

RealNetworks is jumping into the world of MP3 and other digital music download formats with a product called Jukebox, according to sources familiar with the plan. Jukebox is a client-side application that converts, or "rips," compact discs and translates them into a digital file format, the sources said. The product also automatically enters information such as song title and artist into a manageable database for music downloaded from the Internet or CDs. Jukebox is being launched in response to the explosive growth of MP3 (MPEG 1, Audio Layer 3), a compression format that allows for easy downloading of music files onto a PC hard drive or portable MP3 player. Although the format itself is legal, it lacks copyright protections, and the music industry has cracked down on sites offering illegally copied music. But thousands of amateur artists and several high-profile professionals have embraced the technology to distribute their music on the Net.