Open-source audio growing on P2P

CacheLogic, a network management company that monitors traffic being sent over its ISP clients' systems, has a new study out with interesting observations about file formats being traded through peer to peer networks.

Among them is that while MP3 files still account for the bulk of audio swaps (about 68 percent), the open-source Ogg Vorbis format now accounts for 12 percent of music trading. This use is coming primarily in Asia, and primarily using the BitTorrent technology, the company said.

In terms of volume, video files far outstripped music, a natural result given their much larger size. About 61 percent of peer to peer data traffic was dedicated to video, while 11 percent was audio. The remaining "other" category accounts for games, documents, and other less-popular files.

The company also said that the eDonkey network now carries more video traffic than BitTorrent, a reversal of last year's observations.