Roughly three months after the launch of Windows Media Player 11 Beta 1, Microsoft has followed it up with a Beta 2 release of the next version of Windows Media Player for Windows XP, adding more online stores for buying digital music and letting users share content across various devices.
Media Player 11 also has tight integration with the Urge online music store, a joint venture with MTV Networks Inc. Microsoft, however, says the software can also access other stores that support its digital rights management software, which does not include the Web’s most popular store iTunes from Apple Computer.
In addition to allowing users to download music from MTV Networks’ Urge and a host of other online music services, Microsoft also has added integrated support for eMusic, VidZone, and MusicGiants stores to Windows Media Player 11. This brings the total number of online stores that a user can access from within the software to 14.
Get Connected
Microsoft also added Windows Media Connect functionality to the player in Beta 2 as a new feature called Media Sharing.
Microsoft’s enhanced Media Sharing feature is akin to iTunes’ network streaming capabilities, which lets users’ stream music from other computers over a shared network. This comes in handy for sharing music between connected computers in home or office, though obviously it does not allow you to actually download tracks from another PC. You can enable this new feature by clicking on "Options | Library | Configure Sharing".
The media-sharing feature follows Microsoft’s strategy of offering Windows as an entertainment hub for the home. Media Player 11 will be embedded in Windows Vista, which is set for release to consumers in January.
Windows Media Connect allows users to stream the content of their Windows Media Player library to networked devices such as the Xbox 360, which Microsoft is also building into an entertainment center.
Along with the gaming console, Media Player can shoot content to any supporting digital media receiver, such as the Roku SoundBridge or the D-Link MediaLounge, whether it is on a wired or wireless network. “If the latter uses Wi-Fi technology, however, it is unlikely to have the bandwidth for video.”
More information about how to use Windows Media Connect and what digital receivers support the technology can be found online.
Media Player 11 will also be tightly integrated with Zune, the portable media player Microsoft plans to ship this year. The device will be built by Toshiba and go head-to-head against Apple’s iPod, which accounts for more than three quarters of the market, according to the NPD Group.
Media Player 11 also includes many of the capabilities of version 10, released two years ago, including the ability to rip and play CDs and DVDs and manage music libraries.
Microsoft has not disclosed publicly when Windows Media Player 11 for Windows XP will be in its final release. A version of Windows Media Player 11 also will be included in the next release of the Windows client OS, Windows Vista, scheduled to ship on PCs in January 2007.
Windows Media Player version 11 Beta 2, which was released recently, requires Windows XP Service Pack 2, and can be downloaded for free at: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/player/11.