Some Aimster users don't just want to get their hands on the hottest contraband MP3s. They'd love to get a little closer to the Aimster herself.
Aimster cover girl Aimee Deep turned 16 this month, and with the face to launch a million IMs, she's getting enough media attention to make any debutante jealous.
While the world may be witnessing Aimee's coming-out, among hardcore MP3 enthusiasts, Aimster – the company – needs no introduction. Launched last August, it's the maverick file-trading software that allows people to trade files with "buddy" groups over America Online's instant-messaging service.
Although the company admits there are still kinks to be worked out in the current version of Aimster, it's already logged over 4 million users.
But in the golden era of Britney, Aimster knows that hot technology is only as hot as its spokesmodel, and the early returns show that Aimee is "It."
Standing outside the Knight's Tale movie premiere in New York City, Aimee gushes, "It's really cool! I love being here! I've always wanted to be a celebrity. Aimster's a way to get my name out there."
Her name is not the only thing she's putting out. On the front door of the Aimster site, Aimee welcomes users in a slinky black dress slit up to there and a come-hither look that would get other girls her age grounded.
Elsewhere on the site, she leaves little to the imagination in a white string bikini.
While many may call her overexposed, like any savvy It Girl, Aimee has managed to maintain an air of mystery, keeping Aimster fans asking, "who is that HOT chick?"
The short answer is that she's the daughter of Aimster-founder Johnny Deep, who now serves double-duty as Aimee's publicist.
"She's been pushing her mom and me to let her do this for some time now," he said. "But I kind of insisted that she wait until she turn 16, at which point it'd be her decision," he said.
It just so happens that Aimee's social promotion coincides with the launch of Aimster E, a new version of the software that allows IM-file swapping within small-enterprise-level networks.
But the real buzz is over whether Aimee's for real. On the Aimster Girl Fanclub discussion board, some fans speculate that she's a hired model.
It is hard to believe she's the same, slightly awkward girl-next-door who appeared on the site previously as "Madeleine," the first name she no longer goes by. She certainly doesn't look 16.
"Is that a compliment?" Aimee asks in a voice so sweet and earnest it's hard to believe that she's past the age of curfew. "I like being 16, so I always tell people that's how old I am. I just got my driver's permit two weeks ago."
A high-school sophomore, Aimee is a cheerleader and a member of a club called Future Teachers. She "loves all kinds of music," especially Faith Hill and Britney Spears, and she thinks Julia Roberts is the coolest.
And Aimee's newfound celebrity has put her sleepy hometown of Cohoes, New York, on the map.
"I get tons of mail," Aimee said, "mainly from boys but also some girls. They ask me out on dates, but mostly they want to get to know me and ask me about Aimster and stuff like that."
Still, she seems genuinely touched to hear that people don't just lust after her, but love connecting with their buddies using Aimster.
"I went to a dinner with the ex-President of Russia —- Gorbachev -— and he told me his granddaughter uses Aimster!" she said.
That's just the sort of story her daddy would love her to repeat a hundred times. In fact, he's already hired a P.R. firm to make sure she gets it right.
"They help me decide which events to go to and introduce me to the press and make me dress cool and things like that," Aimee said.
Last week, Aimee made her debut into the society pages with a mention in the New York Post's Page 6, which spotted her hobnobbing with stars at the premiere of The Golden Bowl.
Charting her rise out of nowhere, the media-industry buzz sheet Inside.com, glibly asked, "Did the technology press corps ... overlook the next Sean Fanning?"
Never mind the fact that she doesn't know a line of code. The comparison to Fanning – whose nappy hair earned him the nickname Napster in high school – hardly does the lovely Aimee justice. Just look at her and then look at him.
That's not to say that a future romance between Aimee and Sean is out of the question.
After all, besides promoting synergies between the two file-swapping companies, it would be the ultimate P.R. coup.
But for now, Aimee's keeping her options open.
"I like boys who are smart and funny but I'm still pretty much looking," she said.
