Open source media player Songbird has received a massive boost today with the announcement that it will be bundled with Philips’ MP3 players, pushing the software to vast numbers of new users.

For those who haven’t encountered Songbird, it’s an entirely open source media player, with a look-and-feel that’s not entirely dissimilar from Apple’s iTunes setup. Indeed, Songbird has made something of a name for itself as a customisable alternative to iTunes, which many find to be too much of a headache to use under Windows. The deal with Philips will see Songbird distributed with the companies new line of GoGear MP3 players.

TechCrunch is reporting that the players will be bundled with a customised version of Songbird, branded with the Philips logo and, as well you might expect, boasting native support for Philips hardware. There’s also the news that Songbird will become an automatic install from the devices themselves, which, while it sounds really convenient, also sounds just a little like it could become a total pain in the face if Songbird fails to recognise the fact that you’ve already got it installed.

Songbird initially gained popularity for its customisability and the fact that the media player managed to include a web browser built-in, back in the days when the idea of running a browser from a media player didn’t sound like the purest kind of madness; crashes were a bit of a headache. Still, it’s well worth checking out, and it’s nice to see the player managing to pick up a bit of a wider user base.

The real question now is whether or not Philips alone will be enough, or if Songbird is still on the prowl for corporate friends. Then the question becomes one of whether or not it can remain as nimble as once it was with so many obligations…