BitTorrent Offers Video Streaming Services

Peer-to-peer file-sharing badboy BitTorrent has launched BitTorrent DNA, a technology platform to help media companies more effectively stream Internet video.

Bittorrent is widely known as one of the most widely used ways to share pirated music, video, and software over the Internet, but founder Bram Cohen has been trying to turn the technology into a legitimate commercial operation. Last February, the company rolled out an online video store which offers movies and digital video from Hollywood studios; now, the company is offering that media distribution system as a platform to digital content providers under the moniker BitTorrent DNA.

"Given the rapidly growing BitTorrent network, we already have the broadcast infrastructure in place that effectively multiplies the scale of the existing Internet to handle the next wave of content distribution," said BitTorrent president and co-founder Ashwin Navin, in a statement. "Implementing BitTorrent DNA on top of legacy infrastructure has the profound impact of allowing our customers to deliver a better user experience, higher quality video, faster software downloads, all with the security and reliability of a managed service."

BitTorrent DNA is designed to leverage existing content delivery systems in order to pump media (or software, or other downloads) to end users faster, without over-taxing a content provider’s central hosting system. According to the company, BitTorrent DNA can enable publishers to shift as much as 80 pecent of its content delivery burden to a secure, managed peer network.

The BitTorrent DNA service is available today, although exact pricing will vary depending on clients’ needs. BitTorrent DNA’s first customer is Internet television provider BrightCove.