Ruckus Networks, a Herndon,Virginia-based startup, has been making some noise on college campuses across the US. Ruckus is a college-only multimedia service offering free ad-supported downloads to college students. After some initial bad reviews, Ruckus seems to be making moves and gaining traction. Ruckus has over 3 million music tracks available and just recently launched a Facebook application, extensive social networking capabilities, and an improved video service just in time for the new school year.
Backed by Battery Ventures and Shelter Capital Partners, Ruckus has plans to expand its content offering by creating a gaming channel. The student-only gaming channel will offer multi- and single-player games, demos and trailers. The multi-player games will allow student users to play with other members of the Ruckus community.
Additionally, Ruckus has partnered with, Maine-based startup, Goombah to offer a music recommendation engine. Leveraging Goombah, the new service will scan a user's music library and point them to other tracks in Ruckus. The service will offers some social features by highlighting other users with similar music preferences and allowing them to connect and share new music.
If you are a college student and reading this article, I am curious, are you using Ruckus?