Microsoft announced the final version of Windows
Media Player 10 is now available for download. The new player is designed to make it faster
and easier for consumers to discover, download, play and transport their digital media, and
includes the first built-in Digital Media Mall, which enables consumers to browse and
acquire music and video from a broad number of online stores. The Digital Media Mall
includes access in the United States to CinemaNow Inc., Musicmatch Inc., MusicNow LLC,
Napster LLC, Wal-Mart Music Downloads and MSN Music, a preview of which will be made
available tomorrow.
Windows Media Player 10 also enables consumers to transfer their
music to more than 70 portable devices and automatically sync their entire media library --
music, video, recorded TV and pictures -- to new Windows Mobile -based Portable Media
Centers, which Microsoft announced will be available tomorrow at retail.
Windows
Media Player 10 offers a host of new and improved features including:
- New design.
Windows Media Player 10 has a significantly updated look, making it quicker and more
intuitive for users to perform common digital media activities. The player includes new ways
to manage and enjoy a broader range of digital media -- music, video, and now also recorded
TV and more -- and makes it easier than ever for consumers to create their own music
CDs.
- Choice of online stores. Windows Media Player 10 includes the first built-in
Digital Media Mall, where users can easily discover, sample, and download music and video
from a myriad of leading online stores and services, including MSN Music preview, Napster,
Musicmatch, MusicNow, Wal-Mart Music Downloads and CinemaNow in the United States, with more
stores and services to come later this year.
- Enhanced device support. Windows Media
Player 10 works with more than 70 portable devices, making it easy for consumers to take
more digital music with them on the widest range of devices. The player also supports
Windows Media Digital Rights Management 10, enabling consumers to transfer and play
subscription and promotional content on portable devices, from Portable Media Centers
available tomorrow to a range of new devices hitting the market this fall, including those
connected via home networks. The new Auto Sync feature in Windows Media Player 10 will also
work with certain existing and new devices, enabling users to automatically sync their
music, video, pictures and recorded TV to portable devices.
- Smart Jukebox features.
Windows Media Player 10 includes features to help users find and play exactly the digital
media they want, quickly and easily. Users also can rip their favorite CDs in their choice
of the most popular formats; high-quality Windows Media Audio (WMA) and now high-bit-rate
MP3 ripping capability are built in.
Windows Media Player 10 is the only media player
to provide a solution for discovering and downloading music and video from a broad range of
online stores and services, managing and playing media, and taking digital media anywhere on
a wide range of devices. Whether consumers want to enjoy music while sitting at their desk,
watch a video on the laptop at the cafe, take their favorite TV shows on a business trip
with a Portable Media Center, or quickly transfer a playlist of songs to a device on the way
out the door, Windows Media Player 10 delivers more choices than ever before.
Windows
Media Player 10 for Windows XP is now available, in English, French and Korean. Other
language versions are scheduled to become available in fall
2004.
