Apps & Consumer
Winamp partners with Deezer to power its return as a paid streaming app
Winamp and Deezer announced a partnership on Wednesday under which Deezer will power Winamp's upcoming premium music subscription service, using Deezer's white-label technology and global licensed catalog while Winamp keeps its own branding.
The deal anchors a broader relaunch built around the next-generation Winamp Player, which the companies say is scheduled to arrive in the first half of 2027. Winamp and Deezer describe the new app as an attempt to “reinvent the music player for the streaming era” by folding premium streaming, users’ local music libraries, internet radio stations, podcasts, personal cloud-based collections, and other audio sources into a single app.
Much of the product’s detail remains undisclosed, but Winamp says the new player will lean on a customizable interface, social features, and new ways to discover, organize, and enjoy music. The company argues its subscription will offer a fundamentally different experience than today’s traditional digital streaming platforms, though it hasn’t specified how.
That’s a tall claim in a streaming market already crowded with Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music, and it’s unclear how many listeners will add yet another paid subscription on top of the services they already use. Winamp’s leverage is nostalgia and reach: the company says its free desktop player is still actively used by more than 40 million people, a base built over decades since it was the dominant music player of the pre-Spotify era.
The relaunch is also the latest pivot in a string of them. During the web3 boom, Winamp explored NFT integration, letting users link music-related NFTs to their player. Earlier plans called for turning Winamp into a cross-platform mobile audio app. More recently, the company shifted toward creator-facing tools, launching services for monetization, fan engagement, and music distribution. The Deezer partnership marks Winamp’s most deliberate attempt yet to return to its original audience rather than chase a new one.
Why it matters
Winamp is betting that a wave of renewed interest in retro tech — cassette tapes, MP3 players, even iPods — can be paired with modern streaming infrastructure to win back paying users, but it’s staking that bet in a subscription market that is already saturated.