Rob Glaser has landed at his next gig, relatively quickly. He is joining one of the bluechip VC firms Accel Partners, as a Venture Partner, focusing on digital media technology, social media, and mobile service investments. He will remain at his homebase in Seattle, and will surely be looking at the startups based there.
Glaser was at RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) for 16 years, before he stepped down as CEO in January this year, though he still remains the chairman there. Accel has a long history with Glaser: they invested about $6 million in his then-called Progressive Networks in 1995, a year after he founded it.
Glaser as a VC would be a very interesting ride to watch. He hasn’t been the easiest of bosses to work for over the years, as has been well documented, and has been more than hands-on over his time at Real, so being a VC would require lot more patience than he has been used to in the past. Real was always been an early adopter and pioneer in different digital sectors, even if Glaser’s long-term execution record has been mixed. He also has a big picture view of the digital media industry, having dabbled in almost all possible sub-categories over the years. And you certainly can’t accuse of him of not trying to take on big media and entertainment, as evidenced by his legal fights over the years; disruption as a VC would serve him well.
He told PEHub that he will not work Accel full time. “Iām still chairman of Real, am helping some entrepreneurs start a couple of companies and still have a bunch of charity work like my family foundation. So it will be significant, but not fulltime.”
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Rob Glaser, Founder of RealNetworks, Joins Accel Partners
PALO ALTO, Calif., May 26 /PRNewswire/—Accel Partners, a leading global venture capital and growth equity firm operating in Silicon Valley, Europe, Israel, China and India, today announced that Rob Glaser has joined the firm as a Venture Partner. At Accel, Rob will focus on digital media technology, social media, and mobile service investments.
Rob currently serves as Chairman of RealNetworks, which he founded in 1994. Rob has been a member of the Accel Partners family since it invested in Real (Nasdaq: RNWK) in 1995. In addition to his role as Chairman, Rob served as Real’s CEO from February 1994 through January 2010, leading the company from scratch to over $500 million in revenue. Real went public in 1997.
Rob’s extensive experience as a digital and social media pioneer should prove to be an asset for Accel’s renowned and growing technology portfolio. Jim Breyer, a Managing Partner in Accel’s Palo Alto office, said “We have been delighted to work with Rob as an entrepreneur and CEO since 1995. His thought-leadership in the world of digital media and the consumer internet are well known, and we are very excited to have him join the Accel team in his new role as Venture Partner.”
“After years of working with Accel as an entrepreneur, I look forward to working side-by-side with the Accel team to help identify companies which will benefit from the same kind of resources and partnership RealNetworks was so fortunate to have,” said Rob. “There are a wealth of promising startups in the world of digital media and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Accel to help them succeed.”
Prior to founding RealNetworks, Rob worked for Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) for 10 years in a number of executive positions, including Vice President of Multimedia and Consumer Systems. Before joining Microsoft, Rob founded his first company, Ivy Research, in 1981 to make games for the newly launched IBM PC. Rob has also been an early stage investor in several successful technology companies including TellMe, PlanetOut (NSDQ: LGBT), and SmileBox. Rob’s relationship with Accel is part-time, enabling him to keep time open for other engagements, including continuing to serve as Chairman of RealNetworks.
Rob is a 1983 graduate of Yale University, with a B.A. and M.A. in Economics and a B.S. in Computer Science.
About Accel
Founded in 1983, Accel Partners has a long history of excellence and innovation in venture capital, and is dedicated to partnering with outstanding entrepreneurs and management teams to build world-class businesses. Accel today invests globally using dedicated teams and market-specific strategies for local geographies, with offices in Palo Alto, California; London, UK; and Bangalore, India as well as in China via the IDG-Accel Partnership.
With over $6 billion under management, Accel has helped entrepreneurs build over 300 successful companies, many of which have defined their categories, including Actuate, Acopia, AdMob, Agile Software, Alfresco, AMCC, Arrowpoint, BBN, Brightcove, ComScore (NSDQ: SCOR), Etsy, Facebook, Foundry Networks, Gameforge, GlamMedia, Groupon, Imperva, Infinera, Interwoven, JBoss, Kayak, Macromedia, Maven Networks, metroPCS, NextG Networks, Polycom/PictureTel, Portal Software, QlikTech, Rapt, RealNetworks, Redback Networks, Riverbed, UUNet, Veritas, Walmart.com (NYSE: WMT), Webroot, Wily Technology, XenSource and Zimbra. For more information, please visit the Accel Partners web site at http://www.accel.com or find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/accel.
SOURCE Accel Partners
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