[IP] 'New' BitTorrent forces anti-piracy regroup
Begin forwarded message:
From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: May 21, 2005 8:38:43 PM EDT
To: Dewayne-Net Technology List <dewayne-net@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Dewayne-Net] 'New' BitTorrent forces anti-piracy regroup
Reply-To: dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
'New' BitTorrent forces anti-piracy regroup
Renai LeMay, ZDNet Australia
May 20, 2005
URL: <http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/
0,2000061733,39192758,00.htm>
update Illegal movie and software downloaders could have an edge over
anti-piracy operatives thanks to a new feature in the BitTorrent file-
sharing software.
BitTorrent creator Bram Cohen has eliminated the need for Web site
hosting of centralised servers known as 'trackers' in the latest beta
version of the peer-to-peer software. These servers coordinate the
BitTorrent download process and have been a key resource for anti-
piracy units in identifying infringers downloading and sharing
copyrighted material.
The enhancement may cause problems in shutting down the illegal
online distribution of software and content, according to software
piracy watchdog, the Business Software Alliance.
"Currently, if a tracker site is shut down, many downloads are
disrupted," Tarun Sawney, BSA Asia anti-piracy director, told ZDNet
Australia . "So, removing the trackers from the equation will
obviously cause those of us on this side of the battle to regroup."
However, Sawney pointed out that BitTorrent files could still be
identified. "BSA has traditionally sought the assistance of those
hosting the actual pirated files. With or without the tracker sites,
someone still hosts the infringing files," he said.
While BitTorrent's Cohen claims the tracker removal feature is part
of his ongoing effort to make publishing files online "painless and
disruptively cheap", the move is only one of several designed to
remove BitTorrent's dependence on centralised trackers.
Several of the Internet's largest tracker sites -- such as
SuprNova.org -- were shut down in December last year following legal
action by industry bodies including the Motion Picture Association of
America. Similar legal action by Australia's music piracy
investigations unit recently targeted local Internet provider Swiftel.
One development effort by the group behind the once-popular
SuprNova.org site -- dubbed eXeem -- aims to decentralise the
BitTorrent protocol in the style of peer-to-peer (P2P) networks like
Kazaa, while a similar effort to Cohen's was announced earlier this
month by the developers of advanced BitTorrent client software Azuerus.
Weblog at: <http://weblog.warpspeed.com>
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