Winamp Makes Sudden Comeback, Challenging Spotify

Winamp is reportedly set to make a comeback in 2027. The desktop music player platform, which was immensely popular from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, will adopt a model similar to modern streaming applications like Spotify.

Winamp has announced that it will introduce subscription fees upon its return in the first half of next year. This streaming service will be provided by Deezer and integrated into the latest version of the Winamp Player, according to reports.

However, Winamp will not transform entirely into a streaming-only application. The legendary platform intends to maintain its classic essence.

In its press release, the company explained that the premium streaming service will be combined with other signature features. These include users’ local music libraries, internet radio stations, podcasts, personal cloud-based collections, and various other audio sources.

Nevertheless, Winamp has not yet disclosed in-depth details regarding the product. The platform has promised to reveal full details closer to the launch date.

Winamp also promises a different experience for its users compared to current digital streaming platforms. This will be achieved by redesigning the music listening experience alongside the subscription model.

In fact, plans for the revival of Winamp, which was first launched in 1997, were first heard back in 2018. The plan was quite similar to the version to be released next year, where users could stream various types of content.

At that time, the CEO of Radionomy, Alexander Saboundjian, promised that users would not only be able to listen to MP3 format music but also content from the cloud, podcasts, streaming radio stations, and previously created playlists.

The update aimed to address the complexity users face when wanting to listen to different types of content. Previously, users had to switch between various applications to enjoy different services.

“What I see is that you have to move from one player or aggregator to another if you want to listen to radio stations, or switch to a podcast player if you want to listen to podcasts. In my opinion, this is not an ideal experience,” he explained at the time.

For context, Radionomy—a Belgian-based online talent radio company—acquired Winamp from AOL in 2014. Unfortunately, since then, the application appeared to have been neglected and lacked sufficient attention.