A number of Twitter users are saying “RIP Winamp” on Wednesday after it was reported that AOL will pull the plug on the popular MP3, video, and music player on Dec. 20, 2013.
The announce of the demise of Winamp, which was launched in April 1997, took place on Wednesday--exactly a month from when the service will be shuttered.
It means that Winamp 5.66 will remain the final version of the software and will be available for download until Dec. 20.
“Winamp.com and associated web services will no longer be available past December 20, 2013. Additionally, Winamp Media players will no longer be available for download. Please download the latest version before that date. See release notes for latest improvements to this last release,” the website says.
“Thanks for supporting the Winamp community for over 15 years.”
Winamp was purchased by AOL in June 1999, as Arstechnica points out, for $80 million.
According to Arstechnica, the service has been in decline over the past few years due to the rise of iTunes and other programs.
“There’s no reason that Winamp couldn’t be in the position that iTunes is in today if not for a few layers of mismanagement by AOL that started immediately upon acquisition,” Rob Lord, the first general manager of Winamp, was quoted as saying in 2012.
Winamp even released an Android version in 2010 and Winamp for Mac over the past several years, but apparently, the efforts weren’t enough.
Many users remember Winamp for its catchphrase: “Winamp, it really whips the llama’s [expletive].”
