A real-world Internet test reveals that "intelligent" routing of peer-to-peer traffic can drastically reduce network utilization and speed up downloads for subscribers, according to a new study.
Verizon Communications, which participated in the study headed by researchers at Yale University, plans to release the data on Friday at the Distributed Computing Industry Association's P2P Market Conference in New York City.
Using network topology data from Verizon and Telefonica, Yale University tested a software enhancement to the peer-to-peer protocol that it developed with software developer Pando Networks.
What the researchers discovered was that when using the so-called P4P software they were able to reduce the impact of peer-to-peer traffic on Verizon's network by more than 50 percent. This is significant because peer-to-peer traffic makes up roughly half of all traffic traveling over Verizon's network.
The P2P protocol, which is used to distribute large data files, works by requesting pieces of a single file from different hosts all over the Internet. The technology has become popular for distributing high-definition video.
But applications that use P2P eat up a lot of bandwidth, which some service providers say is a problem. Cable operator Comcast has slowed down certain kinds of peer-to-peer traffic in an effort to manage its network. And Time Warner Cable is experimenting with a tiered usage model to deter people from sharing P2P files.
Traditionally, the P2P protocol has requested bits and pieces of content randomly, without considering the physical location of the data. This often results in some pieces of the content traveling over long distances across the network. For example, a user in New Jersey downloading a movie might get some bits of the file from New York and others from China or California.
The P4P software enhancements add intelligence to this process so that the bits are served from local hosts.
Douglas Pasko is Verizon senior technologist and co-chair of the P4P Working Group, which was formed by Verizon, Pando Networks, and the university to develop P4P. He said that when the P4P software was used on the Verizon network it found that 58 percent of its peer-to-peer network traffic stayed local. Using regular P2P technology, only 6 percent of the traffic stayed local.
Reducing the number of hops is key
Pasko said that keeping the traffic local is important because every link that a bit passes through costs the operator something. This means that if a Fios subscriber in New Jersey can get bits of content from Verizon customers in New York City instead of getting them from Singapore or Taiwan, Verizon can save money.
The key is reducing the number of routers or hops the traffic has to go through to get to its destination. On average, Pasko said that regular P2P traffic makes 5.5 hops to get its destination. Using the P4P protocol, those same files took an average of 0.89 hops.
Reducing hops means that Verizon can cut its network costs. Exactly how much the company saves depends on the individual links, but Pasko said the savings are significant.
Verizon broadband subscribers also saw a benefit when the P4P protocol was used. Customers using Verizon's all-fiber network called Fios saw movies downloading on average twice as fast as when they used the traditional P2P software. Some customers saw as much as a 6x improvement in download speeds, Pasko said.
For customers on regular DSL service, the improvement in download speeds wasn't as great because these customers don't have high bandwidth connections anyway.
This real-world field trial validates the value of P2P content providers working closely with Internet service providers to provide the most efficient service for customers, Pasko said. There are already 50 members in the DCIA's P4P Working Group, including some cable operators, such as Comcast, Cablevision, and Time Warner, he said.
"We hope this shows that using P2P in an intelligent way can benefit everyone," he said. "It allows us to use fewer resources on our network and get better performance for our customers."
(Credit:
Crave UK)
There would have to be something seriously wrong with us if we willingly discussed infections--digital or other. But virus protection is something we all need, and what better way to protect ourselves than to use the scariest-sounding anti-virus software on the planet?
BullGuard Internet Security 8 launched recently, and immediately appealed to us as it combines anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, spam filter, online backup and technical support. That's almost everything you could ever need from a digital prophylactic--for 44.95 pounds a year (about $93).
Old-school file sharers should remember BullGuard: It was built into the Kazaa P2P client to help minimise the chances of downloading and using infected files, and worked pretty well, mainly because BullGuard uses scanning technology from BitDefender.
It still suffers the same foibles as most anti-virus products--such as those annoying pop-ups asking if you want to give your applications access to the Internet--but the user interface is easy to use, and you can have instant messenger chats with BullGuard's tech-heads, who'll take remote control of your PC and fix any hassles if necessary.
Aside from the live assistance, the most interesting aspect of the software is the online backup module. You get 5GB of storage space for backing up your most precious files, and you can access that data from any Internet-enabled PC. The online drive is automatically mapped to Windows Explorer so you can drag and drop as normal, or set scheduled backups for specific files and folders. Users can upgrade the standard 5GB backup for £5 per additional GB, but we wouldn't bother--standard external hard drives are as cheap as 5GB for 1 pound.
The biggest hole in the software is the lack of a proper anti-phishing module. Yes, the spam filter can detect phishing emails in clients such as Microsoft Outlook, but it's redundant if you use Web mail. Click a Gmail link purporting to be from your bank, and BullGuard won't do a thing to warn you against divulging credit card or banking details.
Should you bother with BullGuard 8? Yes, and no. Uber-geeks needn't bother--particularly if you know how to avoid viruses in the first place, and can comfortably correct the slip-ups you get while using free anti-virus products. But for the rest of us, BullGuard provides that extra peace of mind, security and support you don't get from some of its rivals. Just be wary of phishing.
(Source: Crave UK)
FrostWire hopes to breathe some new life into the much-maligned P2P file-sharing client LimeWire.
LimeWire has become the Web 2.0 equivalent of Kazaa and the late 1990s Napster. What you think is last night's episode of Heroes turns out to be a villainous chunk of malware, and litigation issues have forced its programmers to include a license filter, warning you if you're about to grab something without proper copyright information attached. Plus, the interface is ugly.
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The RIAA's justification for its strong-arm tactics against alleged file sharers is simple: file sharing acts as a substitute for music purchases and is directly and primarily responsible for plummetting CD sales (which are down 14 percent from last year). I've argued in the past that the entire drop can't be blamed on piracy, and one Harvard study suggested that piracy is having no effect at all.
This week, Billboard published an article about a study commissioned by the Canadian government that investigated the connection between file sharing and CD sales. The surprising conclusion: the most active file traders on P2P networks actually buy more CDs than their less active counterparts. This seems to suggest that the recording industry should abandon its crackdown and embrace P2P networks.
But wait: economist Stanley Leibowitz at the University of Texas, Dallas, has posted a well-reasoned critique of the Canadians' methodology. Essentially, the more active file sharers are the same people who are most interested in music, and therefore the most likely to be buying large volumes of CDs. So, of course you'll see an increase in both measurements--CD purchases and file-trading activity--simultaneously among the same users. To correct for this "simultaneity effect," you have to measure the overall volume of file sharing over time across all types of users--casual to extreme music fans--and compare it with CD sales over the same period. If you do that, Leibowitz claims, you'll see a direct correlation between file sharing and reduced CD sales.
Another problem that seems obvious to me: by focusing on P2P networks, these studies (and the RIAA) ignore other types of file sharing that I think are much more prevalent, such as burned CDs and flash drives. Ten years ago, very few CD collections included music recorded on CD-Rs. Today, almost every collection does.
Also, these studies strike me a bit like investigating why the horse escaped and arguing whether it's because somebody left the barn door open by accident or on purpose. The industry knows its predicament--it's very easy for customers to get recorded music for free. The interesting question is how (and whether) they can adjust their business models to stay viable and relevant under these new conditions.
Still worried that peer-to-peer filesharing networks like Lime Wire are causing users to "inadvertently" expose sensitive documents, posing potential security risks, members of Congress are now asking for a formal investigation into the phenomenon.
Congress wants the FTC (headquarters pictured here) to probe identity theft risks posed by peer-to-peer filesharing.
(Credit: Federal Trade Commission)The latest concern from the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, judging by a 7-page letter (click for PDF) dated Wednesday to Federal Trade Commission chairwoman Deborah Majoras, appears to be this: Peer-to-peer networks may make unsuspecting consumers vulnerable to identity theft.
The same group of politicians, led by Reps. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Tom Davis (R-Va.), suggested earlier this summer that peer-to-peer networks can pose a "national security" threat by allowing users to expose sensitive information unwittingly. (Some politicians, particularly those with entertainment industries in their districts, also took the opportunity once again to condemn unlawful transfer of copyrighted content via the networks.)
The committee members asked the FTC, the federal agency charged primarily with consumer protection, to outline any risks it believes are associated with peer-to-peer filesharing and whether it specifically considered the "impact" of peer-to-peer filesharing when it devised recommendations for fending off identity theft.
The letter closes by asking the federal regulators to reveal whether they feel they have sufficient enforcement powers to "address problems associated with inadvertent filesharing"--and if not, of course, what Congress could do to help.
Lime Wire and the peer-to-peer community have long defended their services, saying they're increasingly incorporating features designed to give users clear warning before they open up, say, their entire My Documents folder to the whole world.
There was no immediate word on how the FTC plans to respond.
Peer-to-peer company BitTorrent is set to announce on Tuesday morning the availability of a new enterprise content delivery product, BitTorrent DNA. Designed for companies that use streaming video, large downloads or games over the Web, the launch of BitTorrent DNA marks yet another conscious move by the San Francisco-based software brand to move beyond its roots as the creator of file-sharing protocol that became nearly synonymous with digital piracy over the past few years.
BitTorrent described the new BitTorrent DNA product in a statement as "the ideal solution for publishers seeking ways to overcome the obstacles associated with centralized content delivery, such as slow downloads, choppy video streams, and inefficient use of network infrastructure." The inaugural client for the new content delivery network (CDN) is online video start-up Brightcove, which powers a number of large companies' broadband media operations.
BitTorrent DNA will be used to "accelerate" the delivery of the video hosted on Brightcove's platform.
With the rise of online video and large-scale media downloads, content delivery has become a crowded niche in the market. BitTorrent DNA will square off with industry leaders like Akamai Technologies--the force behind CBS' video distribution network as well as a host of others. BitTorrent is hoping, however, that its massive following (150 million downloads of its client, according to the company) will help give it an edge.
In addition, the peer-to-peer format has become increasingly popular in the streaming video space, with recent entries like Joost and Babelgum touting P2P technology as the backbone for their professional-quality video content.
In February, BitTorrent announced that it was creating a digital download store that would use that robust user base as a way to legally transfer large movies, games and other files. The company has also forged alliances with major movie studios for legal film downloads.
Meanwhile, the exhaustive battle over online piracy wages on.
In the turbulent, choppy waters where P2P networks and copyright law chomp at each other's fins for dominance, there's at least one beast that thinks it has a solution to keep everybody happy. Its name: Grooveshark. The tagline? "Everybody gets paid."
As content distribution has mutated from analog to digital, the companies that came into existence to control the distribution have panicked and floundered. Decentralized peer-to-peer sharing made this all possible, but it's also thrown nearly a century of copyright law beyond the deep end and into rough waters.
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