Hasta La Gadget!

Yes, there have been BitTorrent bundles from high profile artists before, but it’s still a nice surprise to see The Pixies release its first original song since 2004’s Bam Thwok on the service. If you want to be amongst the first to hear “Bagboy,” then simply download the bundle and unlock it with your email address. Those who do will then receive a complete version of the band’s 2004 Coachella set delivered straight to their inbox. For those of you who haven’t yet discovered Frank Black and his friends, the new single (plus a classic for comparison) has been tucked after the break.

Filed under: Portable Audio/Video, Internet

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Via: Bittorrent Blog

Source: BitTorrent Bundles

Cloud storage services like Dropbox are great not just for backing up data but for sharing files with other people as well. BitTorrent is developing a similar service, with two notable exceptions: it’s completely free, and there is no centralized “cloud” storage. It’s called BitTorrent Sync, and it uses the revolutionary peer-to-peer (P2P) protocol to sync folders across multiple devices.

If you’ve already tried a cloud file storage service, you won’t have a problem using BitTorrent Sync. First, download the BitTorrent Sync program. It has Windows, Mac and Linux versions, with mobile apps coming soon. Then open the program and use it to generate an access key for each folder that you want to sync. The key is just a random bunch of characters. BitTorrent calls the key a “secret”.

I’m sure you get the idea: if you want another computer to sync a folder from your computer, simply install BitTorrent Sync on that computer and then enter that folder’s secret to authorize the sync:

You can also generate read-only folder keys (other computers can copy files from that folder, but they can’t add or remove files) as well as one-time use keys. Here’s a short discussion about BitTorrent Sync from a recent Tekzilla show:

You can download and use BitTorrent Sync for free. I think this is a much better use of P2P compared to BitTorrent Bundle. It’s a great alternative to cloud storage because it’s completely free, even if you intend to synchronize or share terabytes of data on a daily basis. If you’re creeped out at the thought of leaving copies of your data on a remote server, then BitTorrent Sync is a great backup solution as well.

[via Forbes]

BitTorrent announced its new file format, the Bundle, just over a month ago, giving artists new tools to control content distributed P2P. Now, Public Enemy is one of the first to take advantage of those features by releasing its latest single as a Bundle and announcing a BitTorrent-based remix contest. Downloading the torrent gets you a copy of “Get Up Stand Up,” and giving Chuck D and his mates your email address unlocks the Bundle — thereby netting you the song’s music video, outtakes and 37 remix-able multitracks. That last bit is key, as Public Enemy’s encouraging folks to submit remixes of the song to the group using BitTorrent SoShare. From those submissions, Public Enemy will pick the best remix, officially release it, and give the winner recording gear and a smattering of Public Enemy swag. Sound good? You bring the DJ skills, and we’ve got you covered with the source tracks and more info below.

Filed under: Misc

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Via: CNET

Source: BitTorrent, SoShare

The folks over at Torrent Freak have made a habit of monitoring certain known digital pirate havens using ScanEye, a BitTorrent tracking platform. While we assume that is mostly an uneventful task, yesterday they came across something very interesting: a dozen or so instances of adult content videos being seeded by an IP address originating from the RIAA, which is known for rabidly pursuing those who share content via torrent networks.

The first round spotted showed 16 adult content videos, all of them copyrighted, being distributed by torrents via the IP address “76.74.24.200,” which ScanEye showed as belonging to the Recording Industry Association of American, better known as the RIAA. Most of the videos were shown as being made available in April, with a couple being posted just a couple weeks ago.

A closer look was a bit more interesting, revealing that the IP address was specifically pointing at the RIAA website. As Torrent Freak points out, this could indicate the IP address is originating from a webseed added to the torrent files so that even if the files aren’t hosted on the website, they still point to it, making it appear the RIAA is sharing copyrighted videos.

Such an action can be accomplished by anyone, and the most logical explanation is that it would be done in an effort to get the RIAA in trouble or to make some kind of point. This theory makes more sense when it is noted that, according to the EyeScan platform, none of the 16 video files were ever downloaded, indicating they weren’t hosted where they were alleged to be.

Whatever the reason the videos have surfaced, this underscores a solid point – that via the so-called webseed method, any individual can spoof an IP address of someone else, making it appear to watchful eyes that an individual is sharing copyrighted content who isn’t actually doing so. Unless someone performed due diligence and checked out the matter thoroughly, an innocent individual could possibly be pegged for copyright infringement.

SOURCE: Torrent Freak

RIAA website caught sharing copyrighted content is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Many people associate BitTorrent with piracy, and with good reason. But the revolutionary protocol can also be used for legal purposes. For instance, it’s a cheap way to host and distribute large files. Now the company behind the protocol and the first ever torrent client is also pushing for BitTorrent to become a way for artists to hawk their products. It’s called BitTorrent Bundle, and it is weird.

The idea behind BitTorrent Bundle is for artists to release free content – say, songs, movie clips or chapters from a book – that we can download using a BitTorrent client. When you go to the download page, it will show you additional content that you have the option to “unlock” – either by paying or entering an email address. Sounds neat right? Here’s a promo video for BitTorrent Bundle:

You can check out the download page for Kaskade’s freebies right now. At first glance, it seems like a good idea – give people legitimate freebies and hope that they’ll like it enough to buy the rest of your work. However, I don’t think the protocol is uniquely equipped to fill this otherwise honest marketing tactic.

What I mean is, it doesn’t incentivize the act of either leeching or seeding – the two activities central to BitTorrent. Neither does it leverage the number of seeders and leechers as a way for torrent users to see which content is popular. If you go to a torrent site, you can infer what pirates like to download because they are the files with the most number of seeders or leechers, or both. But BitTorrent Bundle seems to have no such ranking or ladder for people to view.

I think that from an artist’s perspective, having a potential customer learn how to use a BitTorrent client is not worth it. It would be a different ball game if BitTorrent Bundle awarded points to devout seeders, which they can then use to unlock premium content from the store. What can BitTorrent Bundle do for musicians and consumers that existing services like Bandcamp can’t accomplish? If I’m a budding filmmaker and I’m giving away a video for free, why don’t I just post it on YouTube or Vimeo so people can watch it instantly – or whenever they want! – instead of making them fiddle with a torrent client?

I keep thinking I’m missing something here, but right now I just don’t see the killer application of BitTorrent Bundle. I guess at the very least it’s an attempt at erasing the stigma behind the protocol. You can also read a bit more about BitTorrent Bundle on TorrentFreak.

[via Electronista]