Another day, another peer-to-peer file-swapping firm trying to go legit. This time it's Azureus, makers of one of the most popular BitTorrent clients on the Internet. The company has just launched its own video sharing site, dubbed Zudeo, which hopes to stand out from a crowded field of contenders by offering high-definition content and storage space for massive files. The site, still in beta, allows the usual mix of tagging, uploading, and free viewing, though content is quite limited and features are still sparse. Users first need to download the Azureus application to get content, though, adding a layer of complexity to the normal process. In return for using a BitTorrent client, Zudeo offers full HD-quality videos and gigabytes of storage space. It's free to content producers, who need to use the Azureus Director Edition to upload their creations.
Azureus isn't the only company using BitTorrent to distribute massive video clips; there's also, err, BitTorrent. BitTorrent (the company) has its own plans to become a content distributor, and it just signed deals with 20th Century Fox, Lionsgate, MTV Networks, Paramount, and Starz that will allow it to offer their content for download in the new year (in addition to deals it signed earlier in the year). The company has also closed another $20 million funding round, a sign that investors still have confidence in peer-to-peer distribution models (or that they desperately want to create a YouTube-style success story). Companies that began life hawking file-swapping apps have had a tough time going straight, but it's not for lack of trying. Sharman Networks (owners of KaZaa) have tried it, as have services like iMesh, but none have been huge hits. Will BitTorrent-based services be the first to break out of the slump?
