PLAY.MUZ.RU –Russia’s first online music retail service, integrated in Windows Media Player, is launched

This new service, developed by Aplana Software, represents the music e-shop MUZ.RU integrated into the most recent version of Windows Media Player 11. PLAY.MUZ.RU is the first and at present, the only one of its type, built in Windows Media Player 11 and substantially enhancing the features of media player.

Integration of MUZ.RU in Windows Media Player became possible owing to new functionality of the last version of Windows Media Player 11 which allows the user to download a music library from the Internet-shop directly into the player and to use it ‘by default’.

The state-of-art graphic interface of a player is fashioned under the show-window of MUZ.RU. By using standard search within Windows Media Player, the user can quickly and easily find the necessary song, album or the singer in MUZ.RU library, numbering more then 500,000 tracks. The user can listen to, buy, copy music on a disk, synchronize library of a player with portable devices and also make their own playlists.
PLAY.MUZ.RU became available to millions of users after Microsoft completed certified testing according to a set of predefined criteria covering all parameters of the service performance, beginning from downloading and buying the items to ease-of-navigation within the user interface.

Service PLAY.MUZ.RU, as well as portal MUZ.RU, were both developed by Aplana Software. Anatoly Gaidai, CTO, Aplana, said: “From the technical point of view, the creation of the e-shop PLAY.MUZ.RU, built in Windows Media Player 11, is a complex integration solution. To make the Internet-shop pass Microsoft certified tests, the user interface needed to look like an integral part of Windows Media Player. Besides, integration of users’ accounts, the catalogue, content and DRM subsystem between PLAY.MUZ.RU and portal MUZ.RU should be provided. I am happy with the work of our team and despite the internal technological complexity of the solution, it will be easy and convenient to use by all."

“MUZ.RU is the first and unique portal to Russia. Its technical features allow the downloading of music both on the basic site, and in the Internet-shop, built in Windows Media Player. Now music falls into the library of the user with only one click“ says director of IT-development and the Member of Board of IFD Capital Group,  Chief Executive Director of MUZ.RU Sergey Sichkar says."

“The largest companies have consolidated the efforts and have made really big business, which will help users to get positive emotions, to create mood, to make the life brighter, interesting and qualitative from the point of view of the musical content, - the president of Microsoft in Russia Nikolay Pryanishnikov declares. - Portal MUZ.RU  means various content, excellent quality, and the most convenient technical embodiment, including service PLAY.MUZ.RU in our last product Windows Media Player 11”

About portal MUZ.RU
MUZ.RU  - is the largest entertainment Internet-portal in Russia specializing on the sales of legal digital music and the only one provider of music from catalogues of four majors. MUZ.RU  belongs to IFD Kapital Group, one of the biggest diversified holding company in Russia. IFD Kapital includes insurance, banking services, retirement insurances, broking and beneficial ownership companies. IFD Kapital enters in top-100 Russian companies for its revenue. Among the partners of MUZ.RU there are such leading recording companies as Universal Music, Sony Music, Warner Music, EMI and the majority of Russian recording studios.
Portal MUZ.RU  has been officially launched in September, 2008. It is an e-shop and Web-broadcasting system built with use of Microsoft Commerce Server and Siverlight technologies.  For April, 2009 the number of visitors of portal MUZ.RU has reached almost 30 thousand people a day. They had access to 500 thousand soundtracks more than 20 styles and directions