Music player Winamp makes code open source for developers

Winamp, the iconic media player for Microsoft Windows, is set to open its source code to developers worldwide on September 24, 2024, allowing the global developer community to join forces.

By unlocking its code, Winamp invites developers from all corners of the world to contribute their ideas and help evolve the software to new heights.

"Winamp has become much more than just a music player. It embodies a unique digital culture, aesthetic, and user experience. With this initiative to open the source code, Winamp is taking the next step in its history, allowing its users to contribute directly to improving the product," Winamp wrote in a post.

Winamp is a media player for Microsoft Windows originally developed by Justin Frankel and Dmitry Boldyrev in 1997 and sold to AOL in 1999.

"This is a decision that will delight millions of users around the world. Our focus will be on new mobile players and other platforms. We will be releasing a new mobile player at the beginning of July," said Alexandre Saboundjian, CEO of Winamp.

"Still, we don't want to forget the tens of millions of users who use the software on Windows and will benefit from thousands of developers' experience and creativity. Winamp will remain the owner of the software and will decide on the innovations made in the official version," he added.

Winamp also took the news to X, formerly known as Twitter, "Big news! Winamp's source code will be available on September 24! This release invites developers worldwide to contribute to its evolution to help create the perfect player for Windows users."

At its height in 2001, Winamp has 60 million users. It supported most music file formats, including MP3, MIDI, and MPEG-1 and had a retro-cute look with several 'skins' which drew youngsters to it in the early days of the internet boom.

A Milkdrop Spikeball Winamp skin. Image Source: Wikipedia