BNET Business Dictionary
Business Definition for: P2P
- peer-to-peer: a means of optimizing the networking capabilities of the Internet among groups of computers. Effectively it puts every computer on an equal footing, in that each can be both a publisher and consumer of information. The traditional model on the Web is the client-server one: the client is a computer that is able only to receive information; the server, on the other hand, publishes information on a Web site. Peer-to-peer makes a computer both a server and a client. Perhaps the best-known example of peer-to-peer is Napster, which enabled person A to search for and download music from person B's computer, while person B could search for and download music from person A's computer.
There are several options for the use of peer-to-peer technologies. Information/content: where the content on your computer becomes accessible to everyone else in the peer-to-peer environment, and vice versa; processing sharing: where computers with spare processing capacity network together in order to combine resources. Using a large number of computers, this can create very significant processing capabilities; services: a computer user can offer services to other people in the peer-to-peer network; file sharing: if person A downloads a file from a central server (an e-learning course from the Internet, for example), other people can use it from person A's machine instead of having to download it again, significantly reducing strain on bandwidth.
The main problem with peer-to-peer is the issue of security, and therefore it is essential to authenticate users. Many peer-to-peer interactions also use encryption, which ensures that the communication is secure as it is being passed from computer to computer.
Wiktionary Definition for: P2P
- # computing peer-to-peer
- # computing pay-to-play
Additional Resources
- House bill seeking government P2P ban gets boost
- Computerworld - Security firm Tiversa Inc. has provided the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee with more reasons to ban the use of peer-to-peer networks in government -- it recently accessed some 200 sensitive military documents via P2P technology. The documents include personal data on U.S. troops based overseas, details...
- News items 2009-10-05
- Bill would restrict P2P use on government networks
- Computerworld - House lawmakers introduced a bill that would restrict the use of peer-to-peer technology on government networks in response to several embarrassing data leaks. The Secure Federal File Sharing Act would bar government employees and contractors from downloading, installing, or using file-sharing software on federal computers and those used...
- News items 2009-11-18
- P2P and BitTorrent Not Welcome in Antarctica
- If you're residing in Antarctica, chances are you are an employee of the United States Antarctic Program USAP. If so – and according to the letter recently sent by the USAP to its employees – you should not be using any P2P or BitTorrent applications because they're…well, dangerous. The...
- News items 2009-08-19
- Lawmaker Seeks Government P2P Ban
- After an October peer-to-peer security incident that inadvertently exposed the list of ongoing investigations by the House House Ethics Committee, Rep. Ed Towns introduces legislation to restrict the use of P2P software by government employees or federal contractors.Legislation to restrict the use of P2P (peer-to-peer) file sharing software across the...
- News items 2009-11-18
- Opinion: P2P law would do nothing but make Congress feel good
- Computerworld - In response to some incidents in which peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing caused sensitive information to show up on computers that it shouldn't be on, Congress reasonably decided to hold hearings in anticipation of actions it might take that would prevent future compromises. Unfortunately, one of the actions that...
- News items 2009-10-07
- NBC Uni embraces P2P.(NBC Universal Inc. to offer downloads of its films)(Brief Article)
- * NBC Universal will offer downloads of its films early next year through Wurld Media's peer-to-peer Internet service Peer Impact, marking the first time a studio has made its films legally available through a P2P network. P2P networks allow users * NBC Universal...
- Research articles 2005-11-21
- Visa Leaps into Euro P2P Market
- P2p payments are finally about to become mainstream in Europe. When Visa EU launches its cross-border P2P service in early 2003, Europeans will be able to send euro-denominated payments to each other using their Visa debit and credit cards. The Visa Dire P2p payments are finally about to become mainstream...
- Research articles 2002-12-06
- P2P CUTS CHINA TELECOM REVENUES: CHIEF ENGINEER
- AsiaInfo Services 08-03-2006 P2P Cuts China Telecom Revenues: Chief Engineer BEIJING, Aug 03, 2006 SinoCast via COMTEX -- The P2P (peer-to-peer)-based VoIP Voice over Internet Protocol operations have begun to apparently cut the revenues of AsiaInfo Services ...
- Research articles 2006-08-03
- DCIA Members Introduce P2P Innovations at Media Summit New York
- NEW YORK -- Clickshare and Digital Containers Offer Secure Payments, INTENT MediaWorks Premieres iPeer, Javien Launches Micropayment Aggregation Engine, and P2P Cash Integrates P2P with Cell Phones Members of the Distributed Computing Industry Association DCIA tonight announced a new secure payment solution, piracy-proof peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing software, advanced...
- Research articles 2005-02-09
- No more lawsuits: ISPs to work with RIAA, cut off P2P users
- In a stunning turn of events, the US music industry has ceased its long-time litigation strategy of suing individual P2P file-swappers. Instead, with New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo acting as a broker, the RIAA has signed voluntary "graduated response" agreements with major Internet service providers. Those currently on the...
- News items 2009-08-07
- Background Discussion of Copyright Law and Potential Liability for Students Engaged in P2P File Sharing on University Networks
- The record industry recently filed lawsuits against four individual university network users, claiming hundreds of millions of dollars in damages based on their peer-to-peer ("P2P") file-sharing activities and consequent violations of federal copyright laws. P2P technology can be used in lawful and constructive ways as, for example, when professors place...
- White papers 2003-08-08
- Mobile P2P - Creating A Mobile File-Sharing Environment
- In the last few years Peep To Peer (P2P) have evolved rapidly in fixed networks. Especially file-sharing between users is extremely popular. File-sharing applications have not yet been adopted in mobile networks though the development of hardware would allow it. In this paper the current mobile file-sharing possibilities in a...
- White papers 2004-02-12
- P2P PAYMENTS: MasterCard, Visa Dueling Abroad
- The european p2p payment market is heating up, as Visa and MasterCard launch rival cross-border funds transfer services. Although they are focusing on the Eurozone for now, both card associations have the potentially lucrative Europe-to-US P2P market in The european p2p payment market is heating up, as Visa and...
- Research articles 2003-08-07
- SMARTguard Reveals Blockster, A Response to Illegal P2P Downloads; SMARTguard to Present at FTC Event on P2P and Consumer Protection
- PORTLAND, Ore. -- SMARTguard SoftwareTM, a provider of tools for helping parents address the problems of illegal, inappropriate and excessive computer use, today announced Blockster, a software program that exclusively monitors free peer-to-peer (P2P) program use to restrict illegal downloads of copyrighted materials, such as movies and music, and prevents...
- Research articles 2004-12-07
- Legal Music Downloads Catching Up to P2P
- Compete submits: The online channel, originally considered a threat to the music and movie industries, has become an increasingly important distribution channel. Over the last several years, we’ve seen more and more industry-sanctioned content download sites. Services like eMusic, Napster the legal version, Rhapsody, and iTunes have grown their...
- External links 2008-10-29
- P2P PATROL Launches Education Program to Protect Children; DCIA Members Support Law Enforcement Efforts
- ARLINGTON, Va. -- The Distributed Computing Industry Association DCIA is launching the third program of its initiative to help protect children online with the introduction of the P2P PATROL (Peer-to-Peer Parents And Teens React Online) consumer Web site at http://www.p2ppatrol.com. Through this Web site, peer-to-peer software program distributors and related...
- Research articles 2004-12-13
- TrustyFiles is First P2P Software to Report Files to Protect Children
- DALLAS & WASHINGTON -- Software Release is Part of P2P PATROL's Comprehensive Initiative of Education, Deterrence, and Enforcement Programs RazorPop Inc. today debuts TrustyFiles 2.4 High Performance File Sharing, the peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing industry's first child-pornography file-reporting solution. The software release follows a P2P PATROL (Peer-to-Peer Parents And Teens...
- Research articles 2005-02-16
- New campaign will help users keep porn off P2P networks.(Cyber Safety)
- A new campaign being launched this fall will help educators and the general public figure out how to rid peer-to-peer (P2P) networks of child pornography. The Distributed Computing Industry Association DCIA Peer-To-Peer Parents And Teens React On Line (P2P PATROL) campaign has been working...
- Research articles 2004-09-01
- Akamai, Limelight to Deploy P2P for Higher Quality, Not Cost Savings
- Dan Rayburn submits: While there's been a lot of hype about peer-assisted technology [P2P] over the past few years, in reality, the technology has gotten very little adoption when it comes to being used to distribute video, let alone streaming. Today, most of the content being delivered via P2P...
- External links 2009-07-01
- What's replacing P2P, BitTorrent as pirate hangouts?
- Driven by increased crackdowns on BitTorrent sites such as The Pirate Bay, software pirates are fast-moving their warez to file-hosting Web sites. Sites such as RapidShare, Megaupload, and Hotfile let anonymous users upload large files such as cracked software for free. Hyperlinks to the software can then be distributed by...
- News items 2009-10-11
Neighboring Terms
