Muziic
Encyclopedia
Muziic is a media player, FLV encoder
and related website
, designed to directly access flash video media files from YouTube
, without the user having to visit the file's display page on the YouTube website. Muziic can also refer to the organization that created and maintains the project. As the name suggests, the primary focus of Muziic is on accessing YouTube's music resources.
Muziic was created by then-fifteen-year-old David Nelson
and his father Mark Nelson. David was responsible for the software development, and Mark organized the project as a company. After a year of development, the pair set up a website, www.muziic.com (launched on 25 February 2009) and debuted the Muziic Player software (version 1.x). Since its launch, the Muziic website has experienced rapid growth in traffic, leaving the site has inaccessible at times. The Nelsons are reported as having had to add additional servers, to keep up with demand.
The service is able to search, sort, play, and create playlists of YouTube videos. It also has an upload function, allowing users to encode media files as flash video and add them to YouTube. Currently, the Muziic Player is available for Microsoft Windows
operating system
(XP
and Vista
) and is dependent on the Flash Player plug-in for Internet Explorer
. The program also has Apple Inc. iPhone
and iPod Touch
versions. Within twenty-four hours of launch, Muziic for iPhone had become the 29th most popular free music app in the iPhone App Store. Muziic is also a version of the iPad
. The Muziic website provides a degree of "social networking" functionality for Muziic users as well, including a community generated directory of YouTube videos, playlists, and channels. Muziic also maintains its own YouTube channel and has a presence on Myspace
, Facebook
, and Twitter
.
The release of Muziic Player version 1 and the related services provided by the Muziic website generated a degree of interest and attention in the online IT
community. A number of computer-technology and music-related online news services and bloggers covered the launch and the discussion of various aspects of it. The focus of the coverage has included the Muziic Player and service, the Nelsons, particularly David, because of his youth and central role in creating the software, and the reactions of YouTube, its parent company Google
, and the recording industry. The way in which the Muziic Player accesses Youtube videos, bypassing the other content found on the webpages where those videos would normally be displayed, raised questions about the acceptability of Muziic to YouTube!/Google, both in terms of the legality and the practical business aspects of the service. It also potentially conflicts with YouTube's relationship with the recording industry and the agreements that YouTube/Google has reached with a number of record companies. YouTube does allow videos hosted on the service to be streamed offsite, subject to certain conditions, and YouTube and Google are developing further aspects of their online video service, including experimentation with the insertion of commercial advertisements into videos and various ways of accessing and organizing content. It was not clear, however, what their reaction would be to third-party developers such as the Nelsons and their Muziic project making use of content hosted on YouTube in such a fashion. The Nelsons state that they had attempted to contact YouTube/Google prior to the launch of the Muziic website but received no response. On March 17, 2009, CNET reported that YouTube and the Nelsons had reached an agreement to allow the Muziic service to continue to operate, and David Nelson was working on minor adjustments to the Muziic Player in order to meet the requirements of the YouTube API terms; the primary change required seems to have involved increasing the size of the player's video screen, which had previously been "postage-stamp
sized" due to the emphasis of music in Muziic.
Muziic has recently announced over 225,000,000 plays on the service since their launch in February 2009.
FLV
Flash Video is a container file format used to deliver video over the Internet using Adobe Flash Player versions 6–11. Flash Video content may also be embedded within SWF files. There are two different video file formats known as Flash Video: FLV and F4V. The audio and video data within FLV files...
and related website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
, designed to directly access flash video media files from YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, without the user having to visit the file's display page on the YouTube website. Muziic can also refer to the organization that created and maintains the project. As the name suggests, the primary focus of Muziic is on accessing YouTube's music resources.
Muziic was created by then-fifteen-year-old David Nelson
David Nelson (software developer)
David Nelson is an American software developer and entrepreneur, known for his role in the leadership and development of the Muziic project....
and his father Mark Nelson. David was responsible for the software development, and Mark organized the project as a company. After a year of development, the pair set up a website, www.muziic.com (launched on 25 February 2009) and debuted the Muziic Player software (version 1.x). Since its launch, the Muziic website has experienced rapid growth in traffic, leaving the site has inaccessible at times. The Nelsons are reported as having had to add additional servers, to keep up with demand.
The service is able to search, sort, play, and create playlists of YouTube videos. It also has an upload function, allowing users to encode media files as flash video and add them to YouTube. Currently, the Muziic Player is available for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
(XP
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
and Vista
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
) and is dependent on the Flash Player plug-in for Internet Explorer
Internet Explorer
Windows Internet Explorer is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year...
. The program also has Apple Inc. iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
and iPod Touch
IPod Touch
The iPod Touch is a portable media player, personal digital assistant, handheld game console, and Wi-Fi mobile device designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line...
versions. Within twenty-four hours of launch, Muziic for iPhone had become the 29th most popular free music app in the iPhone App Store. Muziic is also a version of the iPad
IPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
. The Muziic website provides a degree of "social networking" functionality for Muziic users as well, including a community generated directory of YouTube videos, playlists, and channels. Muziic also maintains its own YouTube channel and has a presence on Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
, and Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
.
The release of Muziic Player version 1 and the related services provided by the Muziic website generated a degree of interest and attention in the online IT
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
community. A number of computer-technology and music-related online news services and bloggers covered the launch and the discussion of various aspects of it. The focus of the coverage has included the Muziic Player and service, the Nelsons, particularly David, because of his youth and central role in creating the software, and the reactions of YouTube, its parent company Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
, and the recording industry. The way in which the Muziic Player accesses Youtube videos, bypassing the other content found on the webpages where those videos would normally be displayed, raised questions about the acceptability of Muziic to YouTube!/Google, both in terms of the legality and the practical business aspects of the service. It also potentially conflicts with YouTube's relationship with the recording industry and the agreements that YouTube/Google has reached with a number of record companies. YouTube does allow videos hosted on the service to be streamed offsite, subject to certain conditions, and YouTube and Google are developing further aspects of their online video service, including experimentation with the insertion of commercial advertisements into videos and various ways of accessing and organizing content. It was not clear, however, what their reaction would be to third-party developers such as the Nelsons and their Muziic project making use of content hosted on YouTube in such a fashion. The Nelsons state that they had attempted to contact YouTube/Google prior to the launch of the Muziic website but received no response. On March 17, 2009, CNET reported that YouTube and the Nelsons had reached an agreement to allow the Muziic service to continue to operate, and David Nelson was working on minor adjustments to the Muziic Player in order to meet the requirements of the YouTube API terms; the primary change required seems to have involved increasing the size of the player's video screen, which had previously been "postage-stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
sized" due to the emphasis of music in Muziic.
Muziic has recently announced over 225,000,000 plays on the service since their launch in February 2009.