It’s a tough time to be a traditional desktop media player.
While video spinners like VLC can still live in harmony alongside Netflix and co, audio players like Winamp have faded into obscurity thanks to streaming music services like Spotify. But that’s seemingly about to change.
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Winamp’s owner Radionomy is set to totally overhaul the program in 2019, transforming it from a single-use audio player into a podcasting, streaming and radio platform, etcetera.
“There will be a completely new version next year, with the legacy of Winamp but a more complete listening experience,” Alexandre Saboundijian, Radionomy CEO, told TechCrunch. “People want one single experience. I think Winamp is the perfect player to bring that to everybody.”
This comes after a five-year official update drought to the Windows app, which itself has been usurped by the likes of other audio players like iTunes, MediaMonkey and MusicBee, not to mention the streaming players.
But for those who still run Windows XP to fuel their nostalgia, it’s not yet clear if Radionomy will keep some of that old world charm the program’s known for.
There’s no word on whether the new version will let users customise the program’s interface — a feature that allowed system tweakers to load various skins to the media player, transforming its appearance.
It’s also not clear if Winamp will be able to load and play content from streaming services like Google Play Music or Spotify.
But, for those who don’t even use Windows, fear not. Radionomy is also planning mobile apps for iOS and Android.
Feature image: Winamp
