Researchers from Harvard and the Netherlands are using a peer-to-peer video sharing application in their efforts to develop a new form of electronic commerce.
The application they’re using is based on a program called Tribler that was created in the Netherlands.
The model might enable, for example, a user who uploads a lot of content to also download a lot and at high speeds. Groups of users could also pool resources to allow for faster video viewing online. In other words, Internet bandwidth would become the currency used by such e-commerce participants.
“Our platform will provide fast downloads by ensuring sufficient uploads,” said Johan Pouwelse, an assistant professor at Delft University of Technology and the technical director of Tribler, in a statement. “The next generation of peer-to-peer systems will provide an ideal marketplace not just for content, but for bandwidth in general.”
“Successful peer-to-peer systems rely on designing rules that promote fair sharing of resources amongst users. Thus, they are both efficient and powerful computational and economic systems,” said David Parkes, John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Natural Sciences at Harvard, in a statement. “Peer-to-peer has received a bad rap, however, because of its frequent association with illegal music or software downloads.”
The researchers are exploring the potential of creating a “web of trust” among users to ensure that such newfangled peer-to-peer e-commerce environments are safe from intruders.
More details here .
