![\"Winamp\"](\"http:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/WinAmp-logo.jpg\"){kind=logo}
<\/a>Winamp<\/p><\/div>\n
Winamp<\/h3>\n
Well known media player, Winamp will no longer be available for download from 20 December 2013.<\/p>\n
It was announced that the Winamp.com website \u201cand associated web services\u201d were given their marching orders by AOL in late November.<\/p>\n
According to Winamp employees, as quoted in a report by ArsTechnica, the media player’s demise was allegedly due to mismanagement on the part of AOL.<\/p>\n
Ars quoted a source stating that the AOL had been “trying to sell [Winamp] for months”, noting that the service was earning revenues of approximately $6 million, annually, and still had millions of users worldwide.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Altech<\/p><\/div>\n
Altech<\/h3>\n
While Altech as an entity still lives on, a string of tough reporting periods for the company over the past few years ultimately led to Allied Electronics (Altron), which already owned a majority stake in the company, to full absorb it into its own operations.<\/p>\n
In August 2013, Altron shareholders approved the acquisition of 34,32 million Altech shares with a total cash value of R1.63 billion, giving hte company 100% ownership of the tech arm.<\/p>\n
Altech subsequently delisted from the JSE, and restructured to form part of a new division in Altron, known as Altron TMT (Telecommunications, Multimedia and Information Technology).<\/p>\n
The Altron TMT division comprises of both the Altech and Bytes businesses, with the two continuing to exist as separate entities maintaining their well-established brand identities.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Sondag Closed<\/p><\/div>\n
Print publications<\/h3>\n
2013 was not a happy year for many print publications, with both international and local magazines and newspapers shutting their doors for physical distribution during the course of the year.<\/p>\n
While some of the listed publications live on in a digital format, some print publications were not so lucky and got shuttered completely.<\/p>\n
In May 2013, Playboy SA<\/strong> announced it would end its print run and go digital, after the \u201churdle of conservative readers\u201d had proved too much for the magazine.<\/p>\n In June, UK-based Trader Media Group, the publisher of car magazine, Auto Trader<\/strong>, also published its final edition of its magazine, having completed its transition to an online digital business. The group’s subsidiary in South Africa was unaffected.<\/p>\n In July, Media24 Magazines, a subsidiary of Naspers, confirmed that it would cease to publish B2B magazine, AdVantage<\/strong>, after 20 years of circulation.<\/p>\n Again, in October, Media24 News then announced that its Afrikaans Sunday tabloid, Sondag<\/strong>, would also be closing – this, some months after24.com announced its decision to disband its Afrikaans Nuus24<\/strong> channel, in June.<\/p>\n Zoopy<\/p><\/div>\n First it was on hiatus, then it was set for a relaunch, and then pegged for a complete overhaul by April 2013.<\/p>\n But instead, online and mobile SA video platform Zoopy just dropped off the face of the Internet.<\/p>\n The Vodacom-owned platform has been a constant no-show since its founders, Pat and Jason Elk, left the company in 2012.<\/p>\n Promises of “returning to air” fell flat in November 2012, with the site getting pulled down completely a month later – and the promised April 2013 overhaul resulting in nothing but a hosting page.<\/p>\n At every no-show, Vodacom remained tight-lipped on the company, saying only that there were no new developments, and no comment could be given at the time.<\/p>\n Whether plans are still in place for the site and brand remains to be seen – but one thing is for sure: Zoopy as it was, is no more.<\/p>\n Zoopy\u2019s new direction<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Altron TMT to rise from Altech<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a>Zoopy<\/h3>\n
More on tech and media companies<\/h3>\n