While the MPAA ramps up its online anti-piracy machinery, British Web analysis firm CacheLogic tells Reuters legal and illegal use of popular file-sharing software BitTorrent now accounts for roughly one-third of Internet traffic. (Here’s another measure — BitTorrent brings up more than 2.7 million mentions in Google.)BitTorrent creator Bram Cohen told the news service, “I don’t think Hollywood is willing to let it slide, but whether they’re able to (stop it) is another matter.” MPAA anti-piracy exec John Malcolm’s take: “”It’s a very efficient delivery system for large files, and it’s being used and abused by a hell of a lot of people … We’re studying our options, as we do with all new technologies which are abused by people to engage in theft.”
Reuters rightly stresses the legal uses of BitTorrent — and Cohen raises the best point of all when he wonders if the illegal sharing can be stopped. Just read a few blog entries and you’ll see plenty of people who would never walk into a store and steal a DVD but are completely comfortable downloading the latest show.
Related: — Film Industry Suing Computer Users
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