Nullsoft, Inc.was an Americansoftware housefounded inSedona, Arizonain 1997 by programmerJustin Frankel.Its products included theWinampmedia playerand theSHOUTcastMP3streaming mediaserver.
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Computer software |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Defunct | 2014 |
| Successor | Radionomy |
| Headquarters | Sedona, Arizona |
Key people | Justin Frankel Tom Pepper |
| Products | Winamp,SHOUTcast,and others |
| Owner | Radionomy Group |
History
editIn 1997,Justin Frankel,a programmer fromSedona, Arizona,founded Nullsoft, Inc in his home town. The company's name is aparodyofMicrosoft.[1]Mike the Llamais the company'smascot.[a]The company launched the media playerWinampin 1997, developed by Frankel and Dmitry Boldyrev. It was the secondreal-timeMP3 player for Windows, followingWinPlay3.[2]
Nullsoft, along withSpinner,were sold toAmerica Online(AOL) on June 1, 1999, for around $400 million and thereafter existed as asubsidiary,subsequently becoming a division of AOL Music. The headquarters were moved toSan Francisco, California.[3][4]
According toBonnie Burton,then editor of the website Winamp, 2001 was a period of heightened tension between the Nullsoft staff and upper management, because of Frankel's uncompromising views about file-sharing. He had developedGnutellain 2000 and released it using company infrastructure.[5][6]Ars Technica also noted that AOL failed to effectively monetize or find a larger audience for Winamp.[7]Nullsoft's San Francisco offices were closed in December 2003, with a near-concurrent departure of Frankel and the original Winamp development team.[1][3]In 2013, some AOL Music sites were shut down and others sold toTownsquare Media.[8][9][10]
In November 2013, an unofficial report surfaced thatMicrosoftwas in talks with AOL to acquire Nullsoft.[11]On January 14, 2014, it was officially announced that Belgian online radio aggregatorRadionomyhad bought Winamp and Shoutcast, formerly owned by Nullsoft. No financial details were publicly announced.[12][13]
Software
editWinamp
editWinamp is a media player released by Nullsoft in April 1997. By 1999, it was downloaded by 15 million people.[1]The company released several new versions of the Winamp player and grew its monthly unique subscriber base to 60 million users by late 2004.[3]Winamp was discontinued by Nullsoft around 2013.[14]New versions of Winamp, which started releasing in 2023, are by a different developer named Llama Group.[15]
SHOUTcast
editSHOUTcast (currently Shoutcast) is anMP3streaming mediaserver.
Nullsoft Scriptable Install System
editIn later years, their open source installer system, the Nullsoft Scriptable Install System (NSIS) became an alternative to commercial products likeInstallShieldor Advanced Installer.[16]
Other
editNullsoft's developments after acquisition included the Nullsoft Streaming Video (NSV) format, which was intended to stream media that used anyaudioorvideo codec.In 2002, the press reported a technology calledUltravoxbeing developed by Nullsoft.[17]The company also created thepeer-to-peernetworksGnutellaandWASTE.[1]Although AOL tried to limit the distribution of Gnutella and WASTE, the Ultravox technology was reportedly used for some AOL radio services in 2003.[18]A service called Nullsoft Television was announced in 2003 using NSV.[19]
Notes
edit- ^this is frequently referred to in promotional material (especially for Winamp) citingllamas.Frankel introduced the llama in Winamp's startup sound clip, inspired by the lyrics ofWesley Willis:"Winamp, it really whips the llama's ass!"[1]
References
edit- ^abcdeKushner, David (January 13, 2004)."The World's Most Dangerous Geek".Rolling Stone.Archived fromthe originalon March 21, 2007.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^"Tales in Tech History: Winamp".August 25, 2017.
- ^abcMook, Nate (November 10, 2004)."Death Knell Sounds for Nullsoft, Winamp".Betanews.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^Krigel, Beth (June 1, 1999)."AOL buys Spinner, Nullsoft for $400 million".CNET.Archived fromthe originalon December 8, 2013.RetrievedApril 15,2024.
- ^Burton, Bonnie (November 22, 2013)."Waving goodbye to Winamp, paying respects to Nullsoft".CNET.RetrievedApril 14,2024.
- ^Harmon, Amy (March 20, 2000)."Technology; Free Music Software May Have Rattled AOL".The New York Times.RetrievedApril 14,2024.
- ^Farivar, Cyrus (July 3, 2017)."Winamp's woes: How the greatest MP3 player undid itself".Ars Technica.RetrievedApril 15,2024.
- ^Constine, Josh (June 2, 2013)."Townsquare Media Acquires Some Doomed AOL Music Sites And Comics Alliance".Techcrunch.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^Cooper, Charles (April 26, 2013)."AOL shuts down music-related services".CNET News.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^Solsman, Joan E. (June 3, 2013)."Radio chain picks up pared-down AOL music sites".CNET News.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^"AOL reportedly wants to sell Winamp to Microsoft".The Verge.November 21, 2013.RetrievedNovember 21,2013.
- ^Lunden, Ingrid (January 1, 2014)."AOL Sells Winamp And Shoutcast Music Services To Online Radio Aggregator Radionomy".TechCrunch.AOL.
- ^"Winamp lives on after acquisition by Radionomy".The Verge.January 14, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 14,2014.
- ^Burton, Bonnie (November 23, 2013)."Waving goodbye to Winamp, paying respects to Nullsoft".CNET.RetrievedApril 15,2024.
- ^Newman, Jared (April 12, 2023)."Winamp is back, but not like you remember".FastCompany.RetrievedApril 15,2024.
- ^Cimpanu, Catalin (March 16, 2017)."Trend: Ransomware Hidden in NSIS Installers Harder to Detect".Bleeping Computer.RetrievedApril 14,2024.
- ^Hu, Jim (June 26, 2002)."AOL aims to supercharge streaming".CNET News.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^"AOL pulls Nullsoft file-sharing software".Flexbeta. May 30, 2003. Archived fromthe originalon September 8, 2004.RetrievedJune 7,2013.
- ^"Nullsoft TV Worldwide Public Access".Nullsoft. Archived fromthe originalon February 19, 2003.RetrievedJune 7,2013.