Simplify Media

Simplify Media operated as a software company that provided a novel solution for personal music library access. The company developed a platform allowing users to stream their entire iTunes music collection across the internet to multiple computers and mobile devices. This service effectively created a personal cloud for a user's music, making it accessible remotely, a significant proposition prior to the widespread adoption of mainstream cloud music services.

The service was offered as free software, downloadable from simplifymedia.com. Its core function was to resolve and stream a user's own content from their primary computer, enabling them to listen on an iPhone or iPod Touch as if the music was locally stored. This model positioned it as an early player in the remote media access space, which aimed to decouple media collections from a single physical device.

In a strategic move to bolster its position in the digital music landscape, Google acquired Simplify Media a few months prior to May 2010. The acquisition was publicly disclosed at Google's I/O Developer Conference, where it was announced that Simplify Media's technology would form the foundation of a new desktop music application intended to compete with Apple's iTunes. The plan involved integrating the streaming technology directly into a future version of the Android operating system, enabling users to stream media from their desktop computer to their Android phone. Following the acquisition by Google, the standalone Simplify Media service was suspended as its team and technology were integrated into Google's ecosystem.

Keywords: music streaming, remote media access, personal cloud, iTunes library, digital music, media server, Google acquisition, Android, music software, remote access, file sharing, desktop streaming, mobile streaming, personal media, digital media access