Kontiki manages digital deliveries
 
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Kontiki, a content delivery company launched by a group of former Netscape and AOL executives in 2000, is wasting no time. The company shipped the first iteration of its delivery network in January, and last week it unveiled some enhancements.
Kontiki executives say they rolled out the enhancements in response to customers who wanted more security and control over how digital media is delivered over public and private networks. Kontiki focuses on delivering rich media, such as audio and video and other large files, so it's not surprising that security concerns have surfaced.
Kontiki last week announced the Kontiki Delivery Management System, as well as a new patent-pending technology called XML Delivery Security.
Kontiki's technology is based on what it calls "bandwidth harvesting," which in essence is a peer-to-peer type of approach that makes use of untapped PC resources and underutilized bandwidth within a network. Kontiki also monitors network traffic and can deliver files at times when network congestion is low. The company claims it can increase network performance dramatically.
With its XML Delivery Security, the company says it now can secure content that it delivers all the way from a server to a user's PC. In addition, XML Delivery Security enables companies to secure content even after it has been delivered to a desktop.
Content could be restricted so it can't be forwarded once it is delivered, or it could be set to be deleted from the user's hard drive after a certain amount of time, says Chris Saito, senior director of product management at Kontiki.
The Delivery Management System is made up of four components:
* Network Publisher, which enables business users, authorized by an IT department, to put content on the Kontiki Network and then manage and track its delivery.
* Network Protector, which uses the XML technology to secure content that's delivered.
* Network Connector, which enables businesses to link the Kontiki network with back-end applications such as content management systems.
* Network Manager, which lets businesses track network usage and performance.
Businesses can license the Kontiki software to deploy on their own, or they can get it as a hosted service.
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Denise Dubie is a Staff Writer covering network management at Network World. She also works as a freelance writer in the Boston area. You can reach her at ddubie@nww.com.
