Major Release of Miro Aims to Compete With iTunes 201
ravrore writes "Miro 4 was released today, a major update to the popular multi-platform FOSS video player. The new version adds music support, local network stream and transfer, music purchasing, and Android syncing. Miro is positioning itself as the open iTunes for Android users. 'We believe the open media world can be just as integrated and usable as the closed, top-down, DRM'ed systems of companies like Apple. And we want to prove it,' says Nicholas Reville, Executive Director of Participatory Culture Foundation, which creates Miro."
It looks like the project still has a few rough edges, but is definitely getting there.
Re:"Open Media" (Score:5, Informative)
No you're fine. Everybody basically acknowledges this, but you're skipping all the good closed media Miro will be selling too: the Miro will let you buy from the Amazon MP3 store, so there will be a good selection of DRM-free music available on the platform, too.
Re:Content is king.. (Score:5, Informative)
I know people seem to like to bash Apple for DRM
And wrongly so since the music bought from iTunes hasn't had DRM in for more than 2 years now.
Re:"Open Media" (Score:4, Informative)
Sure it will, if you use something like MarkSpace's Missing Sync:
http://www.markspace.com/products/android/missing-sync-android.html [markspace.com]
The sync API for iTunes is documented and available to anyone who wants to write something that works with it. What you can't do (and what Apple somehow turned into the bad guy for stamping on) is pretend to be an iPod by spoofing Apple's USB vendor ID so you can be super lazy and not write an interface to iTunes' own sync system.
Missing Sync isn't free, but the sync API (certainly in OS X) is open and documented so you can write your own if you want to.