Nullsoft's future in a void

Another chapter has ended in the long and often tumultuous lifespan of America Online's Nullsoft division, the team responsible for creating the popular Winamp media player.

Over the past year, the team has witnessed the departure of its most influential developers, including Justin Frankel, who created Winamp and sold it to AOL in 1999 for an estimated $100 million. Other core developers such as Tom Pepper, Francis Gastellu and Christophe Thibault soon followed. Now, another key Nullsoft member, Steve Gedikian, has left the company to join Apple Computer.

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What's new:
The recent departure of a Nullsoft founder raises questions about the future of the Winamp media player.

Bottom line:
Music and video have become business cornerstones for tech companies, and some now see AOL's stewardship of Winamp as a missed opportunity.

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Gedikian's recent departure has once again raised questions about the future of Winamp, a pioneering media player that has drawn a loyal following but has remained underutilized by AOL over the past few years.

Music and video have become business cornerstones for technology companies--refueling Apple Computer's profits, for example--and some now see AOL's stewardship of Winamp as a missed opportunity, particularly as the company struggles with declining subscriber numbers.

"The idea there's no one actively developing it is definitely a head-scratcher," said a former Winamp developer who requested anonymity.

Winamp is considered one of AOL's least cultivated properties. Like Netscape, which AOL acquired in 1999, Winamp commanded solid market share during its height, but was eventually neglected as bigger competitors such as Microsoft and RealNetworks introduced their own software.

Steve Gedikian,
founding member
of Nullsoft

AOL spokeswoman Ann Burkart said in an e-mail statement that the company is "committed to Winamp," and cited its "healthy" 5 million unique users per month and the sale of 60,000 premium versions of the player.

Gedikian represented the last in a group of developers known for creating cutting-edge media software that appealed to younger, hipper users. But the team has often caused a fair share of panic among the executive brass at AOL and its Time Warner parent company for its vanguard projects.

"The idea there's no one actively developing it is definitely a head-scratcher."

--former Winamp developer

In a lengthy and personal Web log entry last month, Gedikian bid a fond farewell to his days as a lead developer for Winamp.

While the entry was largely sentimental and thankful for his supporters, Gedikian noted AOL's change in attitude toward the team and the product over the past couple of years.

"Those of us remaining have become quite weary of the many 'compromises' we are asked to make in order to keep moving forward," Gedikian, who has joined Apple, wrote in his blog. "At this point, I feel like I no longer have the power to make any positive impact on Winamp."

Since the acquisition, the Nullsoft team operated with

Why won't AOL just give up?

Another Operating Loss (AOL) just can't get it. What do they have that is successful? Or more correctly, successfully managed? It amazes me that Time Warner doesn't just put a fork in AOL and call it done. No future for the fools at (and subscribing to) AOL. Netscape, WinAMP and everything else AOL gobbles up in the technology world just languishes and dies.

[katamari]

Alternatives are few.

There really are no decently acceptable alternatives to Winamp -- at least not for those of us who rely heavily on customised plug-ins. Foobar2000 doesn't cut it (the author needs to be beat in the head with a UI cluebat), Sonique is intended for the xtc-dxm-dropping raver crowd due to it's excessive focus on visualisations, Windows Media Player shouldn't even be considered, and Apple's iTunes for the PC hasn't been discussed since it's initial release.

Sooner or later someone is going to have to work on a Winamp-like media player that supports, 100% accurately, the Winamp plugin API.

Until then, the reality of the situation is that people will continue to use Winamp no matter if the devs are off smoking an 8-tube Graffix bong in San Francisco somewhere, or working for Apple.

[Ubber geek]

UI cluebat

http://www.analogstereo.com/jaguar_xjs_owners_manual.htm

[TimeBomb]

This is why I detest large companies

I'm no fan of Winamp, but this is just another example of how big business sucks the life out of everything it touches. I can't tell you how sick I am of large corporations devouring everything in their path, commercializing and bastardizing everything, and then leaving a charred mess in their wake, devoid of all the substance it once had.

And I'm not just referring to software. The same thing happens with every product and service you can imagine, and the marketplace in general. Their fear of missing out on a buck means that they can never leave a good thing alone.

I know I'm waxing quixotic, and yes, if I were Frankel, of course I would've taken the money and run, too. Oh well.