NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–AOL Inc. (NYSE:AOL) announced today the general release of the Winamp application for Android (WAFA) that offers a complete end-to-end music management solution for Android – the fastest growing mobile operating system on the market today*. Winamp, a globally recognized media manager operated by AOL’s wholly owned subsidiary Nullsoft, Inc., is used by 59 million people each month** and is the first major brand to introduce a media player for the Android platform. The app offers the first of its kind wireless sync between a desktop computer and a mobile device. Today’s news is another example of AOL executing on its strategy to create more engaging and helpful content experiences for its users.
“As the number two digital music management application worldwide, Winamp is uniquely positioned to be the go-to service for users on this new platform”
Android phones have experienced explosive growth in 2010, representing the first non-Apple platform in digital and mobile music in nearly a decade. “As the number two digital music management application worldwide, Winamp is uniquely positioned to be the go-to service for users on this new platform,” said Kerry Trainor, AOL’s SVP of Entertainment. “At a time when consumers are embracing Android mobile devices, AOL is innovating to meet that consumer demand. The response to WAFA’s beta launch indicates that there is tremendous enthusiasm for a new music management system for Android.”
“Many music lovers today have a vast library of music on their computer but lack an effective means to transfer their files to a non-Apple mobile device,” added Geno Yoham, Executive Director, AOL Music Products. “Winamp now solves that problem for the ever increasing number of consumers who are opting to choose an Android device. We plan to continue to innovate aggressively on this platform.”
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The new, free app has been in a beta testing phase since October 21 and the reviews from the technology community have been overwhelmingly positive – an average rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 from users. Gizmodo, for example, said the WAFA beta “boasts sophisticated features.” Lifehacker noted the “very intuitive interface,” and Phandroid said “the biggest standouts are the ability to sync the library on your desktop to your phone over WiFi or USB.”***
WAFA features include:
- Wireless Desktop Sync - In addition to the standard USB sync, Winamp for Android offers Wi-Fi sync with the Winamp desktop client.
- iTunes Library – A stand-out feature of the WAFA app is the ability it affords users to import all music and playlists from iTunes.
- Mobile Media Library – WAFA is a complete Android media management solution that seamlessly updates a user’s music library when changes are made either on the device or the desktop
- SHOUTcast Radio – Users can access one of the world’s largest radio directories; browse by genre; bookmark favorite directory listings, and view recent listening history
- Persistent Player Controls – Always available controls allow users to quickly pause, change tracks, manage play queue and gracefully navigate through the application.
- Widget Players & Shortcuts – Users can add playlist shortcuts along with a functional widget player to the Android home screen and also directly control playback from the lock-screen.
- Now Playing – This feature displays song info, album art, artist bios, photos and discography. Users can press and hold on the track info to interact with other related apps installed on their phone like Pandora, YouTube and the Amazon MP3 store.
- Scrobbling – WAFA supports scrobbling with the Last.fm app when both are installed, capturing users’ mobile listening history in real time.
- Ongoing innovation of WAFA will include the addition of new features and upgrades over time, including Podcast support, tablet support and more.
About AOL
AOL Inc. (NYSE:AOL) is a leading global Web services company with an extensive suite of brands and offerings and a substantial worldwide audience. AOL’s business spans online content, products and services that the company offers to consumers, publishers and advertisers. AOL is focused on attracting and engaging consumers and providing valuable online advertising services on both AOL’s owned and operated properties and third-party websites. In addition, AOL operates one of the largest Internet subscription access services in the United States, which serves as a valuable distribution channel for AOL’s consumer offerings.
*Source: The NPD Group/consumer tracking service/mobile phone track (from Business Insider, chart of the day, 11/1/10)
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** ‘Worldwide comScore Media Metric October 2010
***Gizmodo, 10/23/10: http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2010/10/this-weeks-best-apps-17/
Lifehacker: http://lifehacker.com/5670589/winamp-beta-brings-a-unique-friendly-interface-to-android-syncs-over-wi+fi
Phandroid, 10/21/10: http://phandroid.com/2010/10/21/winamp-for-android-is-now-in-beta/
