Winamp: Source code disclosed – Discussions about license

The source code of the MP3 player Winamp is now freely accessible on the Internet. As announced in May, the company has now made the sources available in a Github project. However, the proprietary license has led to discussions among interested parties.

The sources are available in a separate Github project. In the associated readme, the company writes that by opening the sources, developers can help to modernize the player and adapt it to the requirements of today's users. Winamp also explains what is needed to help develop the software. It is a "Visual Studio 2019" project and uses the Intel IPP libraries, which must be available in version 6.1.1.035, the developers write. They also list further dependencies on libraries and third-party components.

Winamp sources under proprietary license

Anyone hoping that Winamp would release the sources under one of the permissive licenses such as GPL or even public domain will be disappointed. The company relies on its own proprietary license, which it calls the "Winamp Collaborative License (WCL)". However, this license was initially far too restrictive – and did not allow the project to be forked, which is a prerequisite for further development. The company therefore quickly upgraded the license to version 1.0.1 and deleted the sentence: "No Forking: You may not create, maintain, or distribute a forked version of the software".

While some welcome this in the comments and see it as a response to feedback from the community, others question how a fork can be created without distributing the software if forks are public by default. "Still no license certified by the OSI [Open Source Initiative]," notes another developer. Another programmer clearly scolds: "A real amateur, whoever created this license. And how can you say this is a collaborative license? It seems to me that you want people to do your work for free".

Since initial changes to the license were already possible, it is at least not impossible that Winamp will continue to accommodate willing helpers. Under the license that has now been chosen, interest in working with Winamp is likely to be rather low.

In May, Winamp announced its intention to release the sources of the once extremely popular MP3 player as open source. This is how the company hopes to find co-developers. However, it wants to retain complete control. Managing Director Alexandre Saboundjian therefore qualified in May: "Winamp remains the owner of the software and will decide which of the innovations make it into the official version".

Winamp can now look back on 27 eventful years. Once the most popular MP3 player on the Windows desktop, it has now been overtaken by music streaming services. Perhaps the current move to make the software open source will help it to have a second lease of life.

(dmk)