Live365 has released a new version of their premium Radio365 desktop player software, adding features and strengthening Radio365's position as the preferred player for Live365 listeners.
The new version, 1.1 (beta), makes it easier to get track, playlist, and broadcaster information from within the player. In addition, the playlist display has been expanded to show the last eight tracks played. This includes the ability to view the playlist display for stations other than the one you are listening to, letting you preview a station's content before deciding to play it.
Preference settings which previously required a trip to the Live365 Web site can now be managed within the player. For Windows users, this includes the choice between using the iTunes Music Store or the MSN Music Store for buying downloads; Macintosh users are limited to buying from the iTunes Music Store. Windows users also have access to a "Quick Launch" agent, which lets you access all of your presets from an icon in the system tray. I have close to a 100 presets and find this feature particularly useful. Radio365 now lets you add tracks to your music wishlist, too. Other changes include a new "mini-mode" for conserving screen space, and skins for changing the player's appearance. The net result, according to Live365, is "Internet radio without the Web site."
This freedom from the Web site comes at a good time for me, because Live365 doesn't support my browser of choice, Firefox. Both the Web site and the browser-based player, Player365, are tied to Internet Explorer, which I have abandoned because it has become a conduit for spyware. Even now, when I click on the "View Wishlist" link in Radio365, it insists on launching the page in Internet Explorer and not my default browser. Grrrr.. Hopefully this will be fixed in the final release.
At present, access to Radio365 is limited to Live365 "Preferred" (aka paying) members. A free trial is available, after which Radio365 will only work with a limited number of stations. With the last version, non-subscribers had the option of buying the software for $14.95. But that doesn't seem to be the case this time. Perhaps they're moving towards making it freely available to all Live365 users, which would be a good idea in my opinion.
Recommendations & Windows Media Player
Since I last wrote about Live365, they have started using each listener's station presets list to generate personalized station recommendations. They have also gotten Live365 listed as an "online store" within Microsoft's Windows Media Player 10 (WMP). Here, you can login, play your stations, access your "My Live365" page, and browse the Web site, all within the WMP interface.
Live365 has also added more payment options, including Paypal, money orders, and certified checks. Gift certificates can also be purchased online. Just last week Arbitron released online radio ratings, which for the first time include Live365. These ratings showed that Live365 reached an average of 438,000 people per week during the January 2005 survey period.
—Andy Breeding
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