BitTorrent Could Become a Channel for Branded Entertainment

The following is also my column this week for AdAge Digital. Thank you to those who helped me write the piece.

Bit by bit the road is being paved for marketers to start using BitTorrent as a distribution channel for high-definition branded-entertainment programming.

Yes, the controversial peer-to-peer file-sharing network has many hurdles to overcome -- and for now it remains public enemy No. 1 for almost anyone trying to protect copyrights -- but signs indicate BitTorrent may become a legitimate vehicle for advertiser-supported content.

The file-sharing platform, unlike predecessors such as Napster, enables files to be transferred from one computer to another with relative ease and efficiency. This has made the network popular for the unauthorized trading of the huge torrent files that envelope TV shows and movies.

But in recent months BitTorrent has initiated an effort to legitimize its efficient technology. Several companies are tapping into its power, rather than trying to fight it. Director Steven Soderbergh ("Ocean's 11"), for example, recently announced plans to release his next short film using the technology. Democracy Now, an independent daily radio news program that airs on more than 350 stations in North America, offers BitTorrent distribution. Games and software developers are also using the file-sharing technology.

On the flip side, as a democratized platform, BitTorrent is giving consumers a new way to distribute their own high-quality programming in high definition. If you think podcasting or webisodes are hot now, just wait until you see MariposaHD, a high-def program produced out of Buenos Aires and distributed on BitTorrent. One of the first IPTV shows, MariposaHD is produced by four individuals with "pro-sumer" tools (tools that turn consumers into a producers) and would be impossible to distribute using conventional means. But those producers have been empowered thanks to BitTorrent.

If BitTorrent can further legitimize itself, then it could become a testing ground for high definition branded entertainment programming. Although BitTorrent files require more work to view than say videos on YouTube, the quality it offers is unsurpassed anywhere online.

Don't just take my word for it. In the spirit of writing about an open-content platform, I used my blog to solicit the online community for their opinions on the topic.

Whitney McNamara said BitTorrent will become an integrated part of our data infrastructure that's effectively invisible to end users -- but only if the content's good. Otherwise, don't bother. Others, like Bruno Ribiero, see big hurdles in security and BitTorrent's image as a haven for pirates. Both are good points.

While it remains to be seen if BitTorrent will become a legitimate mainstream channel, savvy marketers may soon start producing and releasing high-quality content on BitTorrent to solicit the feedback of a tech-savvy and influential audience. If they don't, there are plenty of pro-sumers who will. Now is the time to move.

Technorati Tags: BitTorrent, Branded Entertainment

Comments

[JJ]

Heard this before, but I'm surprised that no one brings up the community aspect of Bit Torrent. I'm a member of several private invite-only BT communities. Despite pirated movies, albums, and books getting incredible distribution, these haven't been on the radar of marketers, either because of the taboo nature of pirate communities or, as i suspect, just ignorance of their existence in the first place.

[hubert gertis]

Whitney McNamara is right, but I wouldn't restrict it to BitTorrent. Peer 2 peer clients won't be clients any more, but will become an integrated part of any operating system. Ian Clarke's Dijjer points into that direction, as does Justin Chapweske with his SwarmStream technology.

[Drew Olanoff]

Opera 9's integration should help BitTorrent along as well.

[yuntrip]

龙达网络昆明宏富昆明康辉云南葫芦丝昆明青旅 云南导游 保龙高速 云南手工艺 昆明中策 看看云南 云南信合 梦达尔 云南旅游 云南手机 云南旅游精品 云南膜结构 昆明洗车 昆明康辉 云南龙纳 昆明恒瑞信 云南旅游 康辉旅行社 云光集团 云南国旅 云南医药集团 云南中药信息网 云南旅游 昆明青旅 云南自由行 神州航空 昆明康辉 云南旅游 tourdesigner 云南省国旅 大唐汉方 精品课程 西部旅游 昆明国旅 昆明国际旅行社 昆明国际旅行社 昆明青年旅行社 玩玩云南云南中青昆明康辉 艾码互联云大宾馆 云建软件 云南海外旅行社云南中青国旅 云南旅游网 昆明康辉旅行社 龙行电脑 旅游云南 癌症治疗 高阳集团 云南民族服饰 康辉旅游 创绿集团 华夏韬略 昆明康辉 昆明商标 云南海外旅游 昆明青年旅行社 云南世博国旅 昆明出国留学 昆明国际旅行社 昆明康辉

云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游云南旅游

[NENE]

MariposaHD is only video, NO videoblog (vlog)