Bandwidth could become a form of 鈥渃urrency鈥� with users paying for downloaded files by uploading more data themselves, researchers say.
The goal is to ensure that future content, particularly video, is distributed as fairly and efficiently as possible.
Computer scientists have have used the idea to develop peer-to-peer file-sharing software, which they are asking computer users to try out. They hope eventually to create a 鈥済lobal marketplace in bandwidth鈥�, where people can trade it as a commodity.
Advertisement
The researchers鈥� free software, called , uses a modified version of the popular BitTorrent file-trading algorithm.
This requires people downloading a large file from a single source to pass segments of it on to other downloaders, dividing up bandwidth usage and speeding downloads. Unlike BitTorrent, however, Tribler asks users to 鈥減ay鈥� for the bandwidth they consume by offering up more of their own in return.
This is designed to tackle a common problem with peer-to-peer networks known as 鈥渓eeching鈥� or 鈥渇ree-riding鈥�, where users download lots of data but refuse to upload it, in order to minimise their personal bandwidth usage.
Use of Tribler is governed by a market in bandwidth, analogous to a market for physical commodities like oil. Users earn credit by uploading and can then spend it by downloading. Its creators say this ought to ensure that no one leeches, and that content is made available quickly.
Video demand
鈥淲e are driven by the application of video-on-demand,鈥� says of Harvard University, US. He think that peer-to-peer networks will help meet the growing demand for TV and video content online.
Parkes told New 杏吧原创 that he believes peer-to-peer will eventually replace existing methods of distributing video, including television.
The latest version of Tribler was created by Parkes with colleagues at Harvard and researchers from Delft University of Technology and Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, both in the Netherlands. The work is part of an ongoing research project investigating ways to distribute video content via the web.
Tribler also has social features, allowing people to earn and spend their credit together. 鈥淥ur network-based system already allows a group of 鈥榝riends鈥� to pool their collective upload 鈥榬eserve鈥� to slash download times,鈥� explains of the Delft team.
Some television stations and other companies are already experimenting with peer-to-peer content distribution. For example the BBC鈥檚 iPlayer is built on top of a peer-to-peer network. These programs often prevent leeching by forcing users to upload constantly, which can be a problem for those who may be charged extra for using extra bandwidth.
Encourages sharing
Tribler offers users more control over their own bandwidth, while still encouraging sharing. The researchers say that, in future versions, the value of bandwidth will not be fixed but will be determined by a 鈥榯rust鈥� ranking earned by each user from other users.
鈥淚t is clear that in the future there will be a greater variety and volume of media to consume, requiring different ways of distributing it,鈥� says , who works on alternative methods of media distribution at Lancaster University, UK.
Tribler is one of many experiments by researchers and corporations around the world, Hutchison points out, and it may not prove to be the most popular for future video distribution. 鈥淧eer-to-peer is a good way to get around centralisation,鈥� he explains, 鈥渂ut there are halfway houses like having multiple caches of material, locally and regionally. They may be more attractive to broadcasters because they allow greater control.鈥�
The Delft team will launch Tribler at the in January 2008 in San Jose, California, US.
